Love is like the Sunset
by mellem515
Summary: The most beautiful part of the day is when the sun sets. However, it only lasts for a few minutes before darkness sets in. In the same way, love is beautiful. But before you know it, it disappears, leaving nothing but darkness in the heart..." KainxRuka
1. Invitation to a Dance

**Note: The relationship between Yuuki and Kaname in this fic is purely friendly. No romantic feelings involve. Okiez and thanks for reading!**

* * *

"_Love is supposed to be sweet, bringing happiness to all who experiences it. It is also supposed to be the most amazing feeling in the world. I have experienced love long enough to know that it does bring happiness to one's life. Yet...why does everyone say that love only brings happiness and joy? They never mentioned that because of love, one would also feel pain, despair and bitterness..." -Akatsuki Kain_

**  
Chapter 1: Invitation to a Dance**

The group of impossibly beautiful people walked down the corridor towards their lockers. Accompanying them were the usual whispers of "They're so hot!" by lovestruck girls (and boys), as well as the obsessed followers who tagged behind them. Those who had given up or been rejected in the past merely sighed at the sight of them. As usual, there would be at least one who called out to the group.

"Aidou-kun! Will you go out with me?!"

The blonde-haired boy turned towards the source of the sound, which turned out to be a long-haired girl with a very cute face and the confidence of one who knew she had a killer figure and has dated many guys in the past. He smiled, an act which melted the hearts of all those present, as well as the female teacher who walked past at that moment.

"Ahahaha...Yeah...But I have to say no. " He answered briskly before turning away. A hush descended upon the people gathered there.

"Hanabusa, we are trying to be friends with humans, not shatter their hearts and make them cry," Akatsuki Kain whispered to him. "Oh, wait. You just did exactly that." He rolled his eyes.

The others in the group kept on walking, ignoring what just happened. The rejected girl turned and ran off sobbing, followed by her friends, each of whom gave Hanabusa a look that was a mixture of "How could you do that to her?" and "Will you go out with me then?"

Hanabusa shrugged and followed the others down the corridor. Akatsuki sighed and did his trademark hand-through-hair action. He looked briefly at the disappearing girl and turned to catch up with his group.

"What was that look for, Akatsuki? Could you be interested in that human?" asked Yuuki Cross. "Oh wait, you're not planning on running after her and comforting her and then eating her are you?"

"Yuuki, do I look like I would do that?" asked Akatsuki.

Murmurs of "Yes" floated around the group. Yuuki giggled before asking, "You know why they're becoming more...excited right?

"Huh? Oh yea, the dinner dance is like, a month away." Hanabusa replied.

"Yep. So Hanabusa, if you want to avoid being mobbed by sadly disillusioned girls hoping to be your date, then you better ask someone out quick. None of us has asked someone out yet. Besides Rima and Senri of course. We all know who they're going to ask." Yuuki smirked.

"Say what?" Senri asked, in his usual sleepy tone. He took out his ever present box of Pocky and handed one piece to Yuuki. "Want some?"

"No thanks. I feel sick looking at them. Remember when we had that Pocky feast? I can't look at them without feeling the need to throw up now." Yuuki replied, shuddering at the once-loved food.

The Pocky Feast was a night a few weeks ago that the group of vampires had that changed how they viewed Pocky forever. Senri had ordered a whole box full of the chocolate sticks. Needless to say, the vampires' curious addiction to the biscuit had led to the consumption of no less than 100 packets of Pocky that night. None of them, except for Rima and Senri, as well as Kaname (who was not present that night) had had one bite of the sticks since then. More than one of them had been sick the next day.

"So, Akatsuki, eyeing anyone who could be your potential dance partner?" Takuma Ichijou asked.

Akatsuki knew who he wanted to ask to the dance. Heck, he had known who he wanted to dance with for a long, long time. He just never had the courage to ask her out... Ruka Souen, the girl he has been in love with since he was young and-

"Hey, Ruka! Do you want to be my date?" Hanabusa asked abruptly.

Everyone turned around to face him, each one with a look of incredulity.

"What? Oh, it's because a girl asked me to the dance this morning. I was like, no thanks. She was like oh, are you going with someone else? I was like: Yep. And then she ran off crying."

"And I bet you just walked off without a second thought to how you shattered her heart completely?" Yuuki asked.

"Yeah, pretty much."

"You really are an insensitive bastard, aren't you?" Yuuki said, shaking her head.

"Yep, and proud of it."

Akatsuki couldn't contain the question inside him, and cut in, "So, why ask Ruka?"

"Well, obviously I have to go with someone or she'll know I'm lying. Actually, make that her and 5 other girls," Hanabusa replied with a laugh. "Yuuki is going with Kaname on some Council mission, and Rima is obviously going with Senri. So that leaves only Ruka. Oh, and I would ask Takuma, but I don't swing that way," he smirked at the other blonde-haired boy.

A heated discussion concerning gender soon followed, but Akatsuki heard none of it. He had lost his chance again, and to his best friend and cousin, he thought bitterly. He knew Hanabusa wasn't to blame. Akatsuki had told no one of his feelings, although he suspected Yuuki knew. He was fairly certain that Hanabusa did not hold any romantic feelings towards Ruka. The blonde-haired boy would hate to be tied down to any relationship, except for the one he had for Kaname, but that was a one-sided relationship that consisted only of Hanabusa worshipping the pure-blood. Nevertheless, Akatsuki realised that Hanabusa had more guts than him to ask Ruka out, although it was also true that it would be harder on Akatsuki to ask her out.

Akatsuki realised he must have made a face that showed his emotions when he caught sight of Yuuki staring at him with a look that confirmed his suspicion that she knew of his feelings. Yuuki turned away suddenly. Akatsuki found out the reason why the next second.

"Oh, alright then, Hanabusa. Can I just say that your dancing skills are woefully inadequate, and if you wish to dance with me and not look like a complete idiot, then you will work on them." Ruka smiled.

Laughter broke out amongst the group, and even Kaname's lips turned upwards slightly. Akatsuki sighed inwardly. It was fated, it seemed, for him to never be able to ask Ruka out. He didn't know if he still wanted to go to the dance. He made a note to ask Yuuki afterwards where she was going with Kaname, and whether he could tag along with them.

* * *

Akatsuki fell backwards onto his bed with a sigh. He looked outside the window and silently admired the silver, full moon shining brightly. The bedroom he shared with Hanabusa was dark except for the silver rays of moonlight that shone through the windows. He recalled the times he had during full moons. They were the best times of his life. Playing with Hanabusa and Ruka, having his 5th birthday under a full moon, falling in love...

_He was only a boy who was turning eight in two weeks. Hanabusa was sick, leaving only him and Ruka playing alone in the sandbox. It was their tradition. The three of them would always spend nights with full moons together, be it in the sandbox or not. Those nights were and still are special to them. That night, Ruka and Akatsuki were trying to find out how deep they could dig down into the sand. All of a sudden, Ruka looked up towards the moon wistfully._

"_Hey, Akatsuki," the long-haired girl asked. "How did we start this whole full-moon tradition?"_

"_Umm...I cannot remember." the orange-haired boy admitted._

"_Well, I'm glad we have it on nights like these. The moon is so beautiful...I wish I could hold it in my hands and keep it with me forever." _

"_There's a full moon every month, so it's not like it's a rare thing to see."_

_She laughed, a sound that made Akatsuki feel an emotion that he had never felt before. _

"_That is very true. Still...on a night like this, I wish it would never be morning..."_

_His spine tingled slightly, and his heart skipped a beat. He gazed at the girl, and suddenly, his eyes saw her as a beautiful girl instead of just a pretty cousin. Her innocent, beautifulface, as she gazed up into the star-filled sky, enchanted him. The young boy could not know that what he was feeling was the beginnings of his love for the girl that would never waver. At that moment, he only knew one thing, and that was to wish that this magical night would never end..._

Akatsuki jerked abruptly from his reverie to the sound of Hanabusa entering the room and complaining loudly about the lack of hot water in the shower. He stopped his ranting when Akatsuki fell back again with a louder sigh than before.

"Oi, Akatsuki, are you alright?" Hanabusa asked. "You didn't look that great during dinner."

"What? Oh, nah...I'm fine. Long day..." Akatsuki made an attempt at smiling but failed.

"Akatsuki, I've known you for a long time, and I can tell that you're _not _fine. You seem to be thinking about something very, very serious."

Akatsuki was silent for awhile. He tried but couldn't resist asking, "Are you sure Ruka _really_ wants to go with you? You know her, she's been hoping Kaname would ask her out for years now."

"She knows that this time Kaname isn't even going to the dance. So, I figured, she wouldn't mind going with me since I actually need a date." Hanabusa replied, shrugging.

"So...she didn't have anyone else she wanted to go with in mind?" Akatsuki knew he was pushing his limits too far. He couldn't risk Hanabusa suspecting his feelings. Even though they were best friends, Akatsuki was a very private man, and didn't like sharing his emotions with others.

"Nope," Hanabusa answered briskly. "Didn't have anyone else, at all."

Akatsuki inwardly bit down his hurt that Ruka hadn't even considered him as a date for the dance. He turned away from Hanabusa to avoid showing his face, which he was sure was showing his inner feelings. This unusual characteristic of Akatsuki to ask these types of questions piqued Hanabusa's curiosity. Akatsuki never seemed to care who dated who. He was a man that didn't care about love or romantic feelings. But now...Hanabusa wasn't sure if that was who Akatsuki really was.

It was a few seconds later that Hanabusa suspected the reason for Akatsuki's questions.

"Akatsuki, does it bother you that I asked Ruka to be my date for the dance?"

Akatsuki's heartbeat quickened. _No...it is impossible that Hanabusa could suspect my feelings for..._

"No...why would you think that?" He asked, trying to remain cool.

"Why else would you care who Ruka is going with, or who she wanted to go with?"

"No, no..." Akatsuki answered with an attempted mocking tone. "Hanabusa, I don't care who she's going with. Have fun with her." He added a derisive snort.

"You know that I have no romantic feelings for Ruka. This dance is totally casual. If you like her then tell me. I'm serious here." Hanabusa said with an earnestness that Akatsuki didn't doubt. He knew his cousin really didn't like Ruka romantically. But Akatsuki found that he still couldn't reveal his true feelings. Not yet...

"And _I'm _serious too. Just go to the dance with her. I don't care."

The tone Akatsuki said those words with made Hanabusa seriously doubt his words. He stared at Akatsuki for a moment, trying to figure out why he was acting like so. It took several seconds for Hanabusa to realise what it was.

"Akatsuki, are you in love with Ruka?"

-Chapter End-


	2. Confessions and Decisions

**Chapter 2: Confessions and Decisions**

"_Akatsuki, do you think that Kaname is in love with me?"_

_Akatsuki sighed inwardly. They have had this conversation more than once. He had even started to keep count on how many times Ruka would ask him that question. This one placed the total at 14, excluding the ones before he had started to keep count. He shouted at Ruka with his mind, "Why won't you see that Kaname has no romantic interests at all? The only people he ever loved were his parents, and no one else. Why are you so blind, Ruka?" His anger was mostly directed at himself for not having the courage to actually say those words to her._

"_I'm sure we've had this conversation countless times, Ruka. Why do you keep asking me?" He replied outwardly, his calm demeanour completely opposite to his inner emotions._

"_I'm sorry, Akatsuki. I know it's frustrating for you listening to me talking about Kaname. I'm no different to his fan girls, we act exactly the same way. It's just...a part of me doesn't want to let go of him," she admitted. "I know it's stupid, and you think that I'm a girl who is hopelessly in love with a man who will never love me the same way." _

"_Ruka, I do not think that you are stupid, and how could you place yourself on the same level as those human girls? You are more than they could ever be, mentally and...well....physically." And you're wrong, Ruka, Akatsuki thought to himself. I am the one who is hopelessly in love with someone who will never love me the same way._

"_Thanks, Akatsuki. You really are a great friend to me. You're the only one who listens to me when it comes to Kaname. Even Yuuki can't stand it," she said, smiling at him._

_Ruka couldn't have known that instead of complimenting him, she was actually shredding his heart into little pieces. She had called him 'a good friend', and he realised that a friend was all he was ever going to be to Ruka. He laughed at himself for thinking that Ruka would ever see him as more than a close friend. _

"_Well, getting back to your hopelessly-in-love part," he said in his usual calm tone, giving no sign of his inner turmoil. He was so used to speaking in such a soft tone that he was afraid that he would be unable to shout angrily if needed. "The only advice I can give you is to wait-"_

"_Wait for your flames of passion to burn itself out, Ruka!"Hanabusa's voice cut in dramatically. The boy had appeared out of nowhere._

_Akatsuki closed his eyes in frustration. It seemed that he could never have a full conversation with Ruka alone. Another opportunity for him to express his feelings disappeared. Maybe Hanabusa interrupting was a good thing, he decided. He wasn't sure if he would ever confess his feelings to Ruka. Akatsuki realised that he was quite content for Ruka to not know his feelings for her. All he wanted was to do was to make her happy. If Ruka was happy, he was happy. He would do anything and everything for Ruka, even if that meant that he could never be with her.  
_

_

* * *

_

"Akatsuki, are you in love with Ruka?"

Akatsuki stared at the blonde-haired boy in shock, his mouth opening and closing, forming words that he was unable to sound out. There was a pause as Akatsuki tried to phrase his answer. However, he knew that no matter how many times he denied having feelings for Ruka, Hanabusa would never believe him. Akatsuki knew there was only one answer that Hanabusa would believe.

He took a big breath of air, and answered, "Yes. I love Ruka."

After decades of holding those last three words tightly in his heart, he finally let it out. Strangely, he felt relieved that he could confide in someone, especially since that someone was his best friend. Akatsuki looked at Hanabusa to try and figure out what he thought about his confession. His best friend looked surprised, but not shocked, as if he had figured that out before Akatsuki had confessed.

"Akatsuki, I-"

"You are not going to tell her, are you?"

"No, Akatsuki, of course not. The person telling Ruka about your true feelings will be yourself."

"Thank you, Hanabusa,"Akatsuki breathed a sigh of relief.

"But...can I ask why you've never told anyone, especially her how you feel?" Hanabusa asked. " I'm sure Ruka would understand."

"Because...Oh, you know Ruka. She only has eyes for Kaname. If I tell her, she..." Akatsuki trailed off, not wanting to finish the sentence.

"You're afraid that she won't accept your feelings. You're afraid of her rejecting you and it'll be awkward between the two of you for the next few hundred years?" Hanabusa laughed.

"Thanks for putting it so nice and bluntly, Hanabusa," Akatsuki rolled his eyes. "But in essence, yes. I don't want her to feel that she has to accept my feelings because I'm her close friend. I don't want her to accept me out of pity or sympathy. It is obvious that she...doesn't love me that way," Akatsuki bit his lip as he said the last sentence. He felt as if a shard of glass had pierced his heart. It hurt him. A lot.

"No, no I'm sorry. Shouldn't have said that. But, you could at least have asked her to the dance, you know? It wouldn't seem strange, and you could have used my reason to ask her out," Hanabusa said. And then he realised, "Oh, crap! I-I asked her out. I'm sorry, Akatsuki, I-"

"Hanabusa, it's totally fine. Blame me for not having the guts to ask her first. I hesitated, something that I've done all my life." Akatsuki said with a tinge of bitterness.

Hanabusa put his hand on Akatsuki shoulders. "Hey, it's not the end of the world," Hanabusa tried to inject some reassurance into his words. "The Christmas ball is in two months. Why don't you ask her then?"

"I...why is it so hard though? Every time I talk to her, I feel stupid. It's like everything I say is wrong. I'm afraid that when I ask her out, I'll say things that will ruin things between us..." Akatsuki buried his face in his hands. "Why won't Ruka see that Kaname is just not interested in her or any other girl? She's known him for years, _years _now, and she still...She...I..." He let out a big breath, aware that his internal turmoil was starting to build up.

"Akatsuki, I-" Hanabusa found that he didn't know what to say. He didn't have any experience in dealing in these sort of matters. Hanabusa cursed at his helplessness and inability to say anything that would ease Akatsuki's pain.

Akatsuki knew he had to stop this conversation. If he didn't do something, his emotions would spill out and he would break down completely.

"Hey, Hanabusa, I'm really tired. I'm going to call it a day. Goodnight, and thank you for...tonight."

Before Hanabusa could reply, Akatsuki slipped into his bed, pulled the covers over his head and faced the wall. Hanabusa started to say something, but decided against it. He sighed and looked sadly at his best friend. Akatsuki shouldn't have thanked him. He wasn't worthy of the thanks. All this time, Akatsuki had been keeping all of his troubles inside him all this time, and Hanabusa hadn't suspected a thing. He wasn't a good best friend at all. Heck, he wasn't even a good friend. _I will not let Akatsuki bear this alone, _he decided. Hanabusa would be there this time, to try and lessen the burden Akatsuki had, as friends should.

* * *

Ruka laid on her bed under the covers, unusually exhausted from the day. _So Kaname will be gone the next few weeks. I wonder where he's going-_

She was interrupted from her musings by Yuuki entering the room. Her best friend stared down at her. Ruka was unable to determine exactly what Yuuki was thinking, but she could tell that Yuuki was frustrated at something. Ruka sat up.

"Yuuki? Are you alright? Why are you looking at me like..." Ruka trailed off.

Yuuki let out a sigh and ran her hand through her hair. _How do I begin?_ Her current state of mind can be attributed to what had happened only a few minutes ago. Unbeknownst to Akatsuki and Hanabusa, Yuuki had overheard the entire conversation they just had.

She had been walking down the corridor to her bedroom when she heard a voice asking, "So...she didn't have anyone else she wanted to go with in mind?" It sounded like Akatsuki's voice. Since this morning when she caught him looking at Ruka after Hanabusa asked her to the dance, Yuuki had suspected that Akatsuki's feelings for Ruka weren't simply friendly.

Her curiosity piqued, she had placed herself with her back to the wall and listened. When she finally heard Akatsuki going to bed, she remained where she stood for several minutes. A multitude of emotions flowed through her, ranging from sympathy to frustration. Right now, as she stood in front of a bewildered Ruka, it was mainly frustration. She was still deciding on what to do without revealing Akatsuki's true feelings to Ruka. Finally, she spoke.

"Ruka, do you still have feelings for Kaname?"

"Yuuki, why are you asking me that now?" Ruka replied, thoroughly confused.

"Well, it's just that when Hanabusa asked you to the dance this morning, you seemed surprisingly willing to accept."

"It's...because I know Kaname isn't going to the dance. That's why it was easier to accept Hanabusa's offer," Ruka confessed.

"So, your answer is yes when I asked if you still had feelings for Kaname."

Ruka nodded and looked away. How could she let go of Kaname? He was the reason why she still attended that stupid school anyway. She doubted she could ever give up on him, despite knowing that he had no interest in her whatsoever.

Yuuki sighed. _This is going to be hard_, she thought. It had taken her several minutes to decide what she was going to do after overhearing the boys' conversation, and that was to persuade Ruka to let go of Kaname. Yuuki knew that Ruka would only find sorrow and pain if she continued to cling on to her feelings for the pure blood. Ruka was her best friend, and Yuuki had to do whatever she could to take care of her, even if the process would take, at the current pace, years. And the only way for Ruka to let go of Kaname was to allow another person to fill that space in her heart.

"Ruka...why? I'm sorry if it sounds harsh, but the chances of Kaname being interested in any girl are almost zero," Yuuki decided that being hard was the best way to go at the moment.

Ruka bit her lip. It_ was _hard to hear those words. She didn't blame Yuuki for saying it out loud. She knew herself that her love was a hopeless love. But Yuuki didn't understand how hard it was for her to simply let go and forget.

"I-I know...It's just...My head tells me to let go but my heart clings desperately onto him. I...I don't know what to do." Ruka buried her head between her knees, trying to stop the tears she felt in the corners of her eyes.

"Man...why does Kaname have to be so good-looking?" Yuuki muttered to herself. She walked over and sat down next to Ruka and placed her hand around her shoulder.

"Hey, don't cry, it'll make you look old," Yuuki said jokingly. "It's true that I don't understand what you're feeling. I'm not madly in love with someone, so I can't pretend to understand. But what I can understand is how good-looking Kaname is, and the way he acts is close to perfect as one can get. But, what your heart must try and see is that he isn't interested in something as trivial as romantic emotions or relationships. The only way for that to happen is you either somehow letting go just like that, or you allow another person to come into your heart." Yuuki had no idea how she was going to continue this conversation, she had no idea what to say next. This sort of talk was beyond her.

Ruka lifted her head and looked at Yuuki, a single tear rolling down her cheek. Yuuki's words actually made sense. However, it was easier said than done.

"How am I supposed to find a guy that could replace Kaname? It's impossible..."

"Well, look at it this way. Kaname is your idol because you focus only on his good parts. I know, he's sexy, he's good-looking, he's kind and so on. But-"

"You want me to find what Kaname lacks? Impossible. He is-"

"-an arrogant, self-centred bastard who doesn't open himself to any sort of emotional attachment?" Yuuki finished for her.

Ruka opened her mouth in shock, and closed it again. There was a pause where Ruka tried to make sense of Yuuki's words, before she answered.

"Yuuki! How could you say that about him? He's not-"

"Think, Ruka! The way he talks, how he acts around us. Around you. His actions are enough evidence to show another part of him that you can't see. Or rather, what you don't want to see."

"I...That's not true. He is..." Ruka couldn't finish the sentence. Even though she didn't want to, she knew that Yuuki's words rang true. Yuuki knew her very well to know that she just didn't want to acknowledge the fact that Kaname wasn't perfect.

"See?" Yuuki said, fiercely satisfied. "Even you can't deny what I've just said. So, Ruka, I'm begging you, as your best friend, I can't sit down and let you torment yourself any further. It's time for you to let go."

"But...how?" Ruka asked desperately, tears starting to fall earnestly now. "Yuuki, you don't understand how hard it is for me...It's not whether I want to or now, it's whether I _can _or not. Kaname has always been in my life, and I can't just throw away decades of my feelings for him in a few days. I don't know what to do...I don't know if I can do what you've asked of me...I need your help, Yuuki," Ruka laid her head on Yuuki's shoulders, crying softly.

"You can let go and you must, Ruka," Yuuki answered, laying her head on Ruka's. _You will let go of your chain of hopeless love, Ruka, _Yuuki decided fiercely. _Because I will be do anything to make sure you do!_

_-_Chapter End-


	3. Dinner Dance Part I

**Chapter 3: Dinner Dance Part I- Request for a Dance**

_"Aww! That dress is soooo pretty!"_

_"Do you think Aidou-kun will dance with me if I asked him?"_

_"In your dreams! But I prefer Kain-senpai. He is hot!"_

The squeals of excited girls filled the corridor that the group of vampires were walking through. It seemed as though the girls were purposely squealing louder to attract the attention of the blood-sucking fiends that hid within impossibly gorgeous bodies.

"Geez...you would think that they would talk softer when talking about us while we're right in front of them. It's like, "Okay, okay we get it, Hanabusa is a handsome and self-loving idiot,"" Rima Touya sighed exasperatedly.

"Oi! Rima! Watch what you say," Hanabusa growled. "I-"

"Aidou." A low menacing voice sounded.

"Y-Yes...Sorry, Kaname-sama," Hanabusa answered meekly, glaring at the others who were sniggering at him. "Kaname-sama, shouldn't you and Yuuki be heading off to the meet the Council?"

"I'm not going anymore," Yuuki answered with a huff. "Kaname decided last minute that he was better off alone, so looks like I'm gonna have to go to the dance," she said in annoyance.

Kaname, who had remained silent all this time, suddenly spoke. "I will not be back for two weeks. Aidou, please do not wreck the house while I am gone. Kain, he is your responsibility." With that, he walked away.

Hanabusa looked slightly hurt at Kaname's words, but Akatsuki simply looked annoyed.

"Ok, everyone," Akatsuki said loudly. "The moment Hanabusa looks like he is going to cause trouble, we throw him out of the house until Kaname comes back. Is that fine with everyone?"

"Yes" was the answer from almost everyone except for Hanabusa, whose reply was a variation of curses directed at Akatsuki.

"Geez, tonight's gonna suck," Yuuki muttered.

* * *

The dance hall was filled with the sounds of laughter, talking and music. The room was brightly lit, giving it a cheery and exciting feel, accentuated by the giggles of excited girls and mutters of boys mustering up the courage to ask the girls for a dance. Those who had already invited partners were dancing on the gleaming marble floor. Amongst those dancing were Senri and Hanabusa, along with their dates Rima and Ruka. Watching one of those pairs were Akatsuki and Yuuki. Akatsuki was dressed in a black suit and white shirt which was unbuttoned at the top, giving him a rugged, sexy look. The reason why he was still dateless was because he had rejected every girl who had asked him before, and also because others were still gaining the courage to ask him.

Yuuki was dressed in a midnight blue dress and black heels. Her hair was intricately tied back with a white ribbon. She looked beautiful, even without trying. Boys whispered behind her back, admiring her and also daring each other to ask her for a dance. However, there was something about the way she gazed around the room that discouraged any advances. In truth, Yuuki was seriously bored. The dance had only started an hour ago, and she was already considering ditching the whole event.

"Oi, Akatsuki. Why are you standing there staring at the dance floor? If you want to dance, I can count at least 10 girls hoping to dance with you," Yuuki said.

"I could say the same thing about you. What about your line of boys waiting for a chance to dance with you? Don't frown like that, it gives you wrinkles," Akatsuki replied back, still staring at the same couple he was staring at the whole night.

"Well, you'd better take your eyes off Hanabusa and Ruka soon because the girls are getting restless. And also, that human girl Lisa is in your line of sight too, and I suspect the girls think that you're staring at her. So if you want to avoid a fight here, I suggest you stare at someone else," Yuuki remarked.

Akatsuki didn't reply. He merely turned away and walked to the food table. Yuuki sighed in annoyance and followed him.

"You know, if you really want to dance with Ruka that badly, dance with me until the part where we switch partners," she whispered to him.

Akatsuki froze. "What makes you think I want to dance with Ruka 'that badly'?"

"Please don't insult my observation skills," Yuuki replied with a frown. "You've been staring at her the whole night, and any idiot could figure out why. So, do you want to dance?"

He glared at her for a few seconds before relenting. They moved onto the dance floor, ignoring the dismayed whispers of girls and boys who realised that their opportunity had just disappeared.

The music began, and soon every couple were dancing in time to the beat. Akatsuki and Yuuki passed by Hanabusa and Ruka during the dance, with Hanabusa giving Akatsuki an 'I'm sorry' look while Yuuki and Ruka whispered a quick greeting. Soon, the dance was over, and it was time for the switching of the partners. Akatsuki tensed in excitement as the chance to dance with the love of his life came. However, as fate would have it, Ruka decided to skip this one out to rest. Hanabusa and Yuuki glanced at Akatsuki's face, which had suddenly become blank as he abruptly hid his emotions under his usual calm face. His inner emotions were, however, a mixture of hurt, dismay and deep sadness. He walked off the dance floor, Hanabusa following behind. Instead of walking straight to Ruka to ask for a dance, he veered off towards the drinks section.

"Akatsuki," Hanabusa whispered angrily after he caught up. "What the hell are you doing? Go and ask her to dance!"

"I couldn't," Akatsuki said softly, pouring himself a glass of red punch. "Her feet are sore, she said."

"That's your excuse for not having the guts to ask her!"

Akatsuki sipped at his drink, eyeing Ruka who was talking to Rima. Unknown to Hanabusa, Akatsuki was having a furious debate with himself.

"_Go ask her! Now!"_

"_No...she needs to rest."_

"_A sorry excuse for a weak coward."_

"_Doesn't matter anyway, it's not like she'll miraculously love me after one dance."_

"_It's one dance! What could go wrong? Seriously!"_

"_You-You're right. It's only one dance. After that, it'll be back to normal, right?"_

"_Yes! Exactly. Now go!"_

Akatsuki took one huge gulp of his drink before handing the glass to Hanabusa. He took a very deep breath to calm himself, looked at Hanabusa, gave a half-smile, and set out on what seemed to him was the longest stretch of road he'd ever walked. As he approached, he tried to work out how he would ask Ruka to dance with him. All sorts of possibilities ran through his head. Yet, a vampire's mind works quite the same way as a human mind when it comes to these sorts of things. One thinks that he has it all planned out, but when the moment comes, he does not do it quite as planned. Akatsuki decided, in his head, that he would walk over and start some casual conversation before casually asking Ruka to dance. He screwed it up from the first second he opened his mouth.

"Heyyy..." He stopped. _Shit, what was it I was gonna say again? Shit, shit!_ Rima and Ruka merely stared at him confusedly.

"Akatsuki, are you ok?" Ruka asked, genuinely concerned. The boy had gone completely silent and appeared to be suddenly stressed.

"Yes, I'm fine," Akatsuki replied, wondering how he managed to answer the question. Words suddenly had no meaning to him now. It was like he completely forgot how to put a sentence together.

Akatsuki tried to remember what Hanabusa had told him about women. _Compliment them, they love it._

"That dress is very pretty. Was it your mum's?" he blurted. _What the hell am I???_

Nearby, watching the whole conversation, Yuuki choked on her drink and started coughing violently Ruka stared at Akatsuki, her eyes suddenly cold, and walked off to help Yuuki. Hanabusa came up next to Akatsuki and slapped him across the back of his head.

"Tip for you next time. Saying 'You don't suit that dress', is _not_ a compliment, idiot," and walked off. Rima merely gave a mocking smile before walking off towards Senri.

Akatsuki stood there, completely shocked at himself and what he had said. His mind had just totally gone blank, and he didn't know how on earth that comment left his mouth. _Oh, crap! Shit! Great work, Akatsuki. Well done on ruining your only chance with Ruka, dumbass! _His mind worked furiously on how he was going to repair the damage he had caused with only a few words. Then, as if that whole incident had cleared his mind of any nervousness, he walked towards Ruka with a clear plan in his head.

"Ruka, may I have a word?"

Ruka stared at him, again with those cold eyes, before nodding curtly and walking off towards one of the balconies without a word. Yuuki nodded and smiled at Akatsuki as a sign of encouragement. Akatsuki took a deep breath and followed Ruka. _Even if I screw this up, it won't be that much worse than what I've already done,_ he decided.

On the balcony, Ruka stared out into the sky. It was a beautiful night, the sky filled with countless tiny shining stars. There was a full moon, shining upon the ground with each mystical, silver light. There was a soft breeze floating around, which made goosebumps erupt all over Akatsuki's body.. He stood behind Ruka, clearing his throat, which made her turn slowly around.

"Ruka, I'm so sorry. I couldn't think clearly, and it was just a total mind blank," Akatsuki apologised with the most sincere tone he could muster.

Ruka, yet again merely stared at him. He found it hard to look away from her eyes.

"Akatsuki, you're really an idiot, you know?" She smiled suddenly, her tone warm. "Maybe that's why I like hanging out with you so much. Don't worry about what you said, this dress isn't that great anyway."

"No,no. It looks really good. I'm sorry for what I said. I didn't mean it at all," he apologised again, utterly surprised that she was letting this go so easily.

"Oh, please. You know me, Akatsuki. It's not like it's that big a deal to me. Although, seeing people laugh at you was quite amusing, I must admit," she laughed.

Akatsuki's cheeks reddened in embarrassment. "Please don't mention this to Kaname, or my parents. I won't live to hear the end of it."

"Don't worry, Akatsuki. Kaname wont' hear about this...from me," she laughed. Akatsuki groaned. Hanabusa would be jumping on top of Kaname in excitement the moment he returned to tell him about this.

"So, I'm guessing you were going to ask me for a dance?" Ruka asked.

Akatsuki stopped breathing. She was going to tell him it was no good, that she will never dance with him. Not after tonight, despite what she had said.

"You got me," Akatsuki laughed weakly, his heart hammering against his chest as he braced for what he knew was about to come.

"Well? Aren't you going to ask me again?"

"What?" He asked, utterly confused.

"Oh gosh, you really are an idiot. Akatsuki, I'm saying that I want to dance with you." Ruka held out her hand.

Time stood still for Akatsuki. It seemed like years before his mind processed every word Ruka had said and years after that before he finally understood what she had just said. And then, it hit him. _Ruka wanted to dance with him._ He swallowed hard. _What the hell, I screwed it up anyway, what could go wrong?_

He took Ruka's hand and led her to the dance floor. He spied Hanabusa and Yuuki grinning at him. He made a note to ask Yuuki whether she knew about his feelings for Ruka. But right now, he didn't have the time. He was going to spend every second he could holding on to Ruka and not letting go. The music started, and the dance began. They moved in time with each other in perfect tandem. Their bodies swirled around the dance floor, making every other couple seem clumsy and flat-footed.

The whole time, Akatsuki eyes were focused only on Ruka's eyes. Time stopped completely. Akatsuki felt like he was in heaven. He found it hard to believe that this was actually happening, that it was all not just a dream. His spine tingled and goosebumps appeared on his body where she laid her hands on his body. In those few minutes of bliss, all Akatsuki wanted to do was hold on to Ruka, and never let go.

Abruptly and all too soon, the music ended. Akatsuki held on to her for several more seconds, savouring the last moments of an experience he would probably never have again. Ruka gazed at him deeply, as if reading his very thought. She was leaning into him, still gazing into his eyes, her mouth slightly opened, and then...

"KANAME-SENPAI!!!"

The loud squeals of girls made the two let go of each other quickly, glancing at the reason for the loud noise. It was Kaname. Apparently, he had returned home 2 weeks sooner than expected. He was dressed in a formal suit, which accentuated his already sexy exterior, making every girl swoon and every boy curse him. He ignored everyone and walked purposefully towards Akatsuki and Ruka. Strangely enough, he glanced at Yuuki on the way. When he reached them, he only looked at Ruka.

"May I have a word?" he asked.

There was complete silence in the room, the result of the entrance Kaname had just made. Ruka looked around her uncomfortably before nodding. Kaname walked towards the balcony Ruka and Akatsuki had just been on, with Ruka following close behind with a bewildered look on her face. Yuuki also followed them with a look that made Akatsuki suspect that she knew what was happening. She motioned for the conductor to resume and soon, music filled the room once again.

Outside, Kaname turned around to face Ruka. His face was completely unreadable, which mystified Ruka even more. _What did he want to say to me that couldn't be said in public_? He appeared to gather his thoughts before he spoke.

"Ruka, I need you to stop acting like a child," he said quietly.

She froze, a little offended at his tone. "What are you talking about, Kaname-sama?"

"We both know the truth but only one of us accepts it, and that is me. So I'm going to say it to you in person, so that you can finally accept the truth as well."

"Kaname-sama..."

"Please, Ruka. Do not continue this pursuit of me. It is doomed to failure, for I am not in love with you the same way as you are with me. I am sorry."

-Chapter End-


	4. Dinner Dance Part II

**Chapter 4: Dinner Dance Part II- One Shattered Heart and Two Deadly Duels**

_Ruka looked on wistfully as Kaname walked away from the sandbox towards his parents. He had apologised for leaving, but reassured Akatsuki, Hanabusa and Ruka that he would still be visiting the Aidou manor from time to time. That gave Ruka some hope that at least she would still see him again. Akatsuki saw the look on her face and frowned._

"_Oh gosh...you're still not over him, are you?" he asked, rolling his eyes at her._

_Ruka narrowed her eyes at him and replied, "Why do you care who I like? It's not like it's ever going to be you, is it?"_

_------------------------------------------------------------------------ _

_I am not in love with you._

Those words repeated itself in Ruka's mind over and over again, until she thought she might just go mad from hearing those words in her head. Her mind screamed at him, begging him to explain his words. But, after Kaname had uttered those words that shattered Ruka's heart into pieces, he just remained silent, only gazing at her with gentle, sorry eyes. There was a long pause after Kaname spoke as Ruka struggled to digest his words. She had taken a small step backwards, her disbelieving mind protesting at the truth of his words. Her mouth was slightly opened, her eyes filling up with tears she was unable to stop. It didn't matter now that Kaname was seeing her cry. All that mattered was that Kaname had rejected her, in the cruellest way.

_Why? Why?? Why?! Kaname-sama...I love you! I always have! Why did you say those words to me? I...I...It's not true, right Kaname? This is a joke...it has to be...No...it can't be true! _She cursed herself for not having the guts to shout those words out loud to him.

It took several minutes before she calmed down enough for her brain to process the whole situation. When she actually thought about it, she realised that what Kaname had said was completely out of character and way too abrupt. Why would he come to the dance _just_ to say that to her? Ruka knew that Kaname knew of her feelings for him. He had never spoken a word about it, neither accepting nor rejecting her...until now. Kaname wasn't the type of person that would say those words to anyone. He wasn't a cruel man, or so Ruka believed. Either way, Kaname coming to the ball simply to reject her when he could have done so anywhere else, was too sudden and suspicious, not to mention completely random. Ruka sensed that there was something amiss here, but she couldn't put her finger on it.

And then she saw Kaname staring at something behind her. She turned around to see Yuuki standing at the entrance to the balcony, with a sorry look on her face. And then Ruka understood everything in an instance.

"_I don't know what to do...I don't know if I can do what you've asked of me...I need your help, Yuuki."_

_"You can let go and you must, Ruka."_

"You!" Ruka screamed at Yuuki, a slow rage starting to build up inside her. Before Ruka utter another word, Yuuki wordlessly appeared next to Ruka in an instance, caught her arm and in one step, leapt over the balcony into the forest below. It all happened within a few seconds, almost as if the two girls had never been there. Fortunately, the dance music had just switched from slow to fast, loud music, so no one had heard Ruka's yell. However, Akatsuki, who had been watching the whole conversation but was unable to hear what was being said, saw Yuuki and Ruka disappear off the balcony, leaving Kaname standing there alone. Akatsuki could tell from Ruka's body movements and her yell that whatever Kaname had said had hurt Ruka deeply. He started walking towards Kaname, anger building up within him.

Kaname didn't seem to care that two girls had just leapt off a two storey building into a forest below. He began to walk back into the hall with the sole intention of leaving this party. However, he hadn't gone a few steps before he was blocked by a figure half a head taller than he was. It was Akatsuki. Kaname looked up and saw that Akatsuki was glaring at him, obviously pissed.

"Kaname-sama, what happened?"

"That is none of your business, Kain.," Kaname replied coldly. "Although, I can tell that you saw everything. Needless to say, I am sure those two girls are perfectly uninjured. Now, will you please step aside."

Akatsuki didn't budge. Kaname narrowed his eyebrows menacingly. The air suddenly became chilly and the small breeze blowing a few moments ago started to gain strength. Akatsuki's anger at Kaname briefly disappeared due to his fear of the pureblood. However, Akatsuki gathered himself and refocused himself on what he was going to do, even though he knew how it would end.

"Akatsuki. Step aside." Kaname repeated, this time with a dangerous edge to his voice. To deny a pureblood's orders was paramount to treason in the vampire world. Akatsuki knew that.

"I am sorry, Kaname-sama," Akatsuki began. "But from what I could make of the conversation you just had with Ruka, I could tell that she was deeply hurt. Would that have something to do with you, Kaname-sama?" Akatsuki asked, his tone far from the calm voice he spoke with normally.

"I repeat, that has nothing to do with you. Besides, why would you care what I spoke about to Ruka?"

"Kaname-sama, the first time you hurt Ruka, I gave you a warning." Kaname's eyes flashed at Akatsuki's choice of words. "I said then, that if in the future, you end up causing her unhappiness, then I will not forgive you. Now, it appears that you have hurt her. Kaname-sama, I am sorry but I mean what I say."

With that, he caught the other's arm and leapt off the balcony, exactly like Yuuki did. Kaname didn't resist Akatsuki, even though he could have done so easily. Hanabusa, who had been hiding behind the door, had witnessed everything. He simply watched from afar, not doing or saying anything, but closed his eyes after Akatsuki and Kaname disappeared. _Akatsuki..._

* * *

Yuuki ran through the forest at an incredible speed, her hand still firmly gripping Ruka's arm. Ruka yelled in protest and attempted to pry Yuuki's fingers off her, but to no avail. The two girls moved swiftly, whipping through branches and leaves in their haste. All that time, Yuuki didn't speak a single word, merely narrowing her eyebrows in concentration as she navigated through the forest. They came to a small clearing where the moon cast its silvery light onto the forest floor. There, Yuuki finally stopped and let go of Ruka.

"What the hell are you doing?!" Ruka spoke angrily as she brushed leaves off her dress.

"You think that I would let you fight me in front of everyone?" Yuuki asked disdainfully. She didn't care that her dress was now torn in several places, and her hair was in a mess. She simply looked at Ruka, expecting the other to make the first move.

"You! How dare you ask Kaname to say those words to me? Did you think that just because he rejected me that I could just simply walk away with no hard feelings and forget all about him?" Ruka asked angrily, her voice slowly increasing in volume with each word. What had happened just now with Kaname had completely robbed her of any sane thoughts. She needed someone whom she could use to vent her frustration and grief at. Yuuki, who had obviously devised this plan, was the perfect person.

"Look," Yuuki replied, trying to calm Ruka down. "I didn't ask Kaname..." Ruka raised her eyebrows. "...to say it like that." Yuuki finished the sentence slowly. It was true. All she had asked Kaname to do was to tell Ruka his true feelings so that she could move on. She had specifically requested for Kaname to break the news _gently._ And then that son of a bitch had done it in the coldest and cruellest possible way. _Bastard,_ Yuuki cursed him. When this whole incident has settled down, she was going to confront Kaname and give him a piece of her mind, even if he was a pureblood. Yuuki shook her head. _Stupid purebloods._

"So you did ask him to say those words?" Ruka asked. She couldn't believe that her best friend could betray her in such a way.

"Yes," Yuuki confessed. "But I did it with a good intention! I didn't want you to be hurt by him any longer."

"Good intention? Didn't want me to be hurt any longer?" Ruka asked incredulously. "In case you didn't notice, instead of 'not wanting to hurt me any longer', your grand plan turned out to do the complete opposite!"

"Yes! I did notice and I'm sorry!" Yuuki spoke angrily, losing her patience. "But in case _you_ haven't noticed, Kaname's words were truthful and you know it. Your pathetic heart just wants you to believe that what he says isn't true. That I cooked up this whole, fake plan and it's all a lie. Well, guess what? It's _not_ a lie, and it's _not_ what you think it is."

"Oh? So what exactly _did_ you have in mind? Did you think that after Kaname spoke those words, I would just prance off and forget the whole thing?"

"No, that's not it! Damn it!" Yuuki cried in frustration. "Ruka, you're such an idiot! All your life you've been dreaming about Kaname, even though it's obvious that he _doesn't love you_. Why are you so blind? Every time you talk about him, it's like hearing a blind person talk about how beautiful the sky is even though he can't see it. Ruka, you're better than this! Do you seriously think that Kaname would be interested in someone who _grovels_ on the ground in front of him, begging for a little bit of his attention? Because if I were him, I wouldn't want to date you. You know why? Because you're pathetic!" Yuuki abruptly stopped. With a realisation of horror, she realised what she had just said to her best friend. She had no time to apologise because the next second, Ruka sent one leg flying through the air aimed at Yuuki's face.

Reflexively, Yuuki stopped the blow with her fist. She mentally cursed herself for saying what she'd said. However, she had no time to ponder the consequences of her words, because Ruka's blows required Yuuki's every second of concentration so that she could avoid being hit.

Ruka was filled with a white hot rage that coursed through her body and showed itself through her every kick and punch. She had snapped completely, and if before she was defined as incapable of rationalisation, right now she had completely lost her mind to anger. The two vampires fought each other in a flurry of hits and blows so fast that an observer had to fully concentrate just to see their hands moving. Both possessed the lightning quick reflexes and agility of vampires, and both were equally matched in skill and strength. Neither gave in to the other, although Yuuki's blows aimed to stop the fight, unlike Ruka who was fighting to actually hurt Yuuki. Yuuki knew that it was her fault that Ruka was in such a rage, she had let her tongue get away like always, and the result was this. A fight between two best friends.

Ruka sent one fist flying into Yuuki's stomach, driving all the wind from her lungs. Yuuki let out a whoosh of air and staggered back. She instinctively ducked, one second before Ruka's kick came flying around and swung above her, whipping across Yuuki's hair. Yuuki planted her hands on the ground and swung her legs in a wide circle. Ruka leapt backwards but Yuuki caught her legs as she was somersaulting back. Ruka felt herself being pulled back and tried to resist. Gravity acted on her and she slammed onto the ground with a hiss of pain, one of her legs still in Yuuki's hands. Ruka twirled around, jerking her leg from Yuuki and landed on her feet, panting. Yuuki gave her no time to recover, lunging forward and appearing right in front of Ruka in a split second. She swung her fist towards Ruka, but missed as Ruka bent the entire half of her upper body backwards, making a perfect right angle with her legs. Ruka rolled sidewards and with a burst of superhuman strength, somersaulted backwards in a huge arc, landing on the branch of a tree nearby.

Both girls were breathing heavily, trying to regain their breaths. Ruka had skinned both her knees when she hit the ground earlier, and Yuuki had a small gash on her left cheek. Ruka crouched down on the branch, resting one of her hands on the side of the tree, and the other on the branch. She steadied herself, locked her eyes on her best friend/current enemy no.1, and launched herself off the branch, streaking towards Yuuki. Yuuki braced herself for the impact, bending her knees slightly and tensing her muscles. When the clash came, she was pushed back by the force of the impact. Ruka continued her assault on Yuuki, throwing in punches and small kicks. She kept herself off the ground by stepping lightly on Yuuki's arms whenever she lost momentum. Yuuki was faced with a barrage of hits and blows, wincing every time her opponent landed a hit. It was hard to retaliate since Ruka had the advantage of height and could use her legs to kick.

Abruptly, Yuuki rolled sideways. Ruka, stunned from the sudden action, lost her stepping stone and landed on the ground with a grunt. She had hardly looked up when Yuuki's leg came flying and knocked her against a tree trunk. Ruka felt all the air escape from her lungs and winced at the pain. She saw Yuuki's fist come flying towards her face and ducked. Yuuki's fist slammed into the tree, causing her to yell out in pain. Ruka, now at eye level with Yuuki's stomach, threw a punch at her, causing the other to stagger back in pain. Yuuki summoned her strength and leapt up, landing on a branch on the tree. She supported herself by leaning with one hand against the tree trunk, breathing heavily. She could tell that her body would be covered with bruises the next day, providing that Ruka had calmed down enough to act rationally. She gritted her teeth and yelled down.

"So, this is what it has come to?" she asked, looking down at the figure glaring up at her.

"You brought this on yourself, Yuuki! You knew what were the consequences if I found out, I'm surprised you were the one who pointed the finger at yourself," Ruka shouted back.

"I was trying to look after you, and this is the thanks I get?"

"Look after me?" Ruka asked incredulously. "You arranged for someone to shatter my heart into pieces!"

"Maybe it was for your own good then!"

Yuuki was done rationalising with Ruka. She was going to end it. Now. She launched herself off the tree. At the same time, Ruka pushed off the ground towards the air. They met in mid-air, exchanging blows off each other. Neither could land a hit, until finally, Yuuki hit Ruka in the shoulder hard, causing her to streak towards the ground. Ruka hit the ground hard, and saw Yuuki flying towards her with her fist raised, ready to deal the final blow. Ruka closed her eyes, waiting for the end.

It didn't come. Ruka tentatively opened her eyes and saw Yuuki's fist about a centimetre away from her face. Yuuki's face was a mixture of frustration and remorse. She dropped her hand and walked away, leaving Ruka on the forest floor. Ruka sat up, wincing as she felt the pain of her injuries. She called out after the retreating figure.

"At least have the decency to deal the final blow!"

Yuuki turned around, her face suddenly blank. "I was the one who caused all of this. It is not my right to end the fight." With that, she started to walk away.

Ruka felt a sudden rise of anger. She leapt up and ran towards the other girl. She collided into her, throwing them both to the ground. Ruka landed astride of Yuuki. Yuuki made no attempt to throw Ruka off her. She merely stayed still, her face turned sideways staring at the ground. Her face had gone blank the moment she walked away from Ruka. Outwardly, it appeared that Yuuki was satisfied she had won the fight and was showing mercy to Ruka. Inwardly however, Yuuki was horrified at her actions. She had come so close to seriously injuring her best friend. Her best friend! She couldn't believe that she had lost control and acted in such a dangerous and disgraceful manner. She didn't deserve to be Ruka's best friend. She was disgusted with herself.

Ruka also stayed astride Yuuki. The collision, it seemed, had cleared her mind. Her head was bowed down towards the ground.

"Why... why didn't you finish it?" she asked softly. "It would have been kinder to me," she said, tears beginning to fall down her gashed cheeks.

Yuuki turned to face Ruka. "Ruka...I almost injured you badly. Hell, I almost killed you. I am not worthy to be called your friend. Friends don't try to kill each other," she whispered, closing her eyes in remorse.

"No...this all happened because of me," Ruka replied bitterly. "Gods, what have I become, Yuuki? I've turned into some monster, and all because of Kana-" she cut herself off. There was a moment's silence. Abruptly, she stood up and turned away from Yuuki. She staggered forwards a few steps, before falling onto her knees onto the ground.

"Why don't you love me, Kaname!" she screamed at the sky. She lowered her head and began to sob earnestly, her hands hanging limply by her side. The fight between the two had left her too exhausted to keep her emotions in any longer. She didn't care what happened next. She only knew she wanted to keep crying forever. Life didn't hold any meaning anymore.

Yuuki slowly stood up, tears also falling down her cheek. The tears were not for herself, they were for her friend. She walked towards the kneeling figure and knelt down next to it. With one hand around the other's shoulder, she gently pulled Ruka close to her. Ruka rested her head on Yuuki's shoulder, grateful that she had at least someone who loved her. Yuuki didn't say a single word, but hugged the other girl tighter, letting her actions speak for her. The two figures knelt there together, unmoving and silent except for Ruka's sobs as droplets of rain began to fall from the dark, starry sky.

* * *

At the same time when Yuuki and Ruka were running through the forest towards the clearing, Akatsuki and Kaname landed on the forest ground a few hundred meters away from the dance hall. The whole time that they were moving, Kaname made no attempt to escape or attack Akatsuki. The pureblood merely followed the other vampire without a word. It seemed that he had been prepared for this outcome.

Akatsuki turned around the face Kaname, his face set in determined lines despite his fear of the pureblood. He had come too far to back down now. Without realising it, Akatsuki was tensing his muscles in preparation for the conflict he knew must happen.

"Kaname-sama, I am deeply sorry for my actions. However, a promise is a promise. You have hurt Ruka, and I cannot forgive you a second time," Akatsuki said quietly. Balls of fire appeared out of nowhere, lighting up the dark forest.

Kaname showed no outward emotions, but replied in an equally quiet voice, "Kain, you know that this fight is futile. You cannot hope to defeat me. Why do you wish to continue?"

"Ruka means a lot to me, Kaname-sama," Akatsuki answered. "It pains me to see her hurting in any way. I'm sorry but I cannot allow you to hurt her anymore." Without a moment's hesitation, Akatsuki reached out his hand and sent a ball of fire towards Kaname.

The fire dissipated before it could reach its target. Kaname hadn't made any visible movement. Abruptly, Akatsuki felt himself being thrown backwards by an invisible force. He attempted to stop himself, but failed and slammed into the tree. He cursed softly and tried to stand back up. He couldn't move. He felt his body being pinned down. Struggling with all his might, Akatsuki still couldn't break free of the invisible pressure. Kaname was still in the same position as before. Akatsuki felt the fear from before returning in full force. _You cannot hope to defeat me_, Kaname had said. It was barely a minute into the fight and Akatsuki was already at the other's mercy. He knew it was the end. You didn't pick a fight with a pureblood and lose without a consequence. Akatsuki closed his eyes and waited for the pureblood to finish it.

It was several minutes before Akatsuki realised that there was no sudden burst of pain. He opened his eyes slowly to see that the pureblood was _still_ standing in the same place. Akatsuki was however, also still pinned to the tree.

"Kaname-sama, why aren't you finishing me off?" Akatsuki asked, wondering if what he said was going to speed up his inevitable death.

"I only kill for a reason. You are not a sufficient reason for me to stain my hands with blood," Kaname replied, his voice as quiet as ever.

"I offended you, dragged you here and attempted to kill you. Are those not good enough reasons for you to kill me?"

"Kain, you sound like you actually want to die. If so, I would do it without hesitation."

"No, I-I didn't mean to sound like that," Akatsuki replied meekly.

"Tell me, Kain. What is Ruka to you?" Kaname asked, catching the other off guard completely.

"I...I told you before...s-she is a very important person in my life," Akatsuki stammered.

"Why so?"

"I...she is just a close friend of mine."

"Just a close friend?" Kaname inquired, a hint of incredulity to his tone. "You seem way too overprotective of her to be just a close friend."

"Isn't that what friends do? Protect each other against danger and making sure they aren't hurt in any way?"

"I can tell the difference between friendship and love, Kain," Kaname said.

Akatsuki widened his eyes in shock. "Kaname-sama... I am not in love with Ruka," he lied, wondering inside why he kept denying that fact.

"Say what you will, Kain. I know the truth. I will only say this: In the end, you'll have to choose between denying what you know is true, or expressing your true feelings. The answer depends on how you want to spend the rest of your life. Before you make your decision, ask yourself: will you regret that decision?" With that, Kaname released the pressure pinning down Akatsuki and walked away.

Akatsuki fell onto the ground, staring after the disappearing figure. What Kaname had said was true, Akatsuki realised. He wanted to spend the rest of his life with Ruka. To do that, he had to reveal his feelings. Akatsuki wasn't sure if he was ready to make that move, but he knew he had to do it soon before someone else took her away from him. He didn't know how long he stayed on the ground for, but he felt the droplets of rain falling onto his face. He looked up at the night sky, asking himself how his life became so complicated. It was several minutes before he finally got up, brushing dirt and leaves from his ruined suit. He made his way back towards the dance hall, wondering how he was going to slip in and out without anyone noticing.

Suddenly, he heard a twig snap and a rustling noise. He instinctively tensed his body, ready for anything that would appear from the darkness. Another twig snapped. Akatsuki could make out two shadowy figures appearing. He narrowed his eyes, balls of fire appearing around him again.

"Akatsuki!" He jerked in surprise at the voice. The red orbs dissipated. It was Yuuki, holding onto Ruka who was staggering along, obviously exhausted. Both girls looked like hell, their dresses torn in many places and their bodies littered with cuts and bruises.

"What the hell happened to the two of you?" he asked, helping Yuuki to hold on to Ruka who would've collapsed without a form of support. She didn't make any sound, but merely stared down at the ground.

"One thing led to another and we somehow ended up like this," Yuuki answered evasively.

Akatsuki frowned at her and looked at Ruka. Without another word, he lifted her up with both arms and started to walk briskly back towards the school where the dance was held. As she gazed at the orange-haired boy carrying her best friend protectively against his chest, Yuuki realised that everything was not lost. She shook her head and smiled, following after Akatsuki back out the forest.

--

-Chapter End-


	5. A Secret Meeting

**Chapter 5: A Secret Meeting**

"_Ruka! What are you doing here?" _

"_Shh, Mum! Akatsuki and I are having a secret meeting here. Hanabusa and Kaname don't know about it. We're planning Hanabusa's surprise birthday party. It's going to be awesome!"_

"_Well...fine. Just don't stray anywhere, ok?"_

"_Don't worry, Mum. I'll be alright. Besides, I've got Akatsuki here to protect me. He won't let me get hurt, right Akatsuki?"_

_

* * *

_

Yuuki looked carefully around her as she walked, trying to find anyone who might see her as she made her way to the park near the school. She winced in pain every time her legs moved at a particular angle, the result of the fight between Ruka and her a few days ago. Looking back now, she couldn't believe she had acted in such an immature manner. She mentally berated herself for concocting such a ridiculous plan in the first place. What made her think that the plan would work? _Sigh..._One of the consequences of that plan was the array of cuts and bruises she had obtained from the fight. Ruka didn't look it, but she could pack a huge punch. Still, it was not a complete disaster. Ruka and her had made up the next day, promising each other that they would not let such a trivial matter separate them ever again. However, Ruka's mentality had not changed much. Sure, she was devastated by Kaname's words, but she was still holding on to him, albeit by a thread. It infuriated Yuuki. How could someone still hold on after being rejected so harshly? Yuuki shook her head. It seemed impossible to persuade Ruka to let go of her feelings for Mr Perfect Pureblood/Son of a Bitch, as Yuuki was fond of calling him nowadays in her mind.

Her thoughts led her back to what she was about to do. She was on her way to the park to meet up with one of the other vampires. They had agreed to this meeting just yesterday. He had nodded quite seriously when she asked, implying that he had similar thoughts to her. However, it was out of his character to be serious about, well, anything really. Having serious talks in secret meetings wasn't exactly a trait of-

"Yuu~~~ki! I'm he~~re!" a voice sounded musically.

"Hanabusa, you seriously have no idea what the term _secret meeting_ means, do you?" Yuuki asked, looking up exasperatedly.

Hanabusa was sitting on top of one of the highest branches of a great oak tree in the park. It was one thing to even make it to the top of the ridiculously tall tree, but to lean against the tree trunk so casually, without fear of falling, was an extremely remarkable feat. The impossibility of the task was diminished when Yuuki leapt onto the tree, making her way swiftly up the trunk and onto Hanabusa's branch with apparent ease.

"And have you given thought to what people will say when they find you sitting on top of a four storey high tree?" she asked as she sat down next to him.

"Hey...I'm a vampire. Am I not allowed to enjoy what my abilities allow me to do?" Hanabusa replied back without remorse. "Besides, you're up here too, so what gives you the right to lecture me about secrecy? And it's midnight, so it's not like anyone's going to stroll into the park and somehow see us up here."

Yuuki glared at him for a moment before sighing. "Whatever," she shrugged.

"So, what did you want to talk about that has to be discussed on a tree, in a park and at midnight?" Hanabusa asked her, munching on an apple he brought along.

"Firstly, you chose the tree. Secondly, the contents of this conversation stays within us, is that clear?" she asked, her voice sounding slightly threatening.

"Fi~ne..." he agreed in that annoying musical voice. "So, what's going on?"

"You know that Akatsuki has romantic feelings for Ruka, right?"

Hanabusa was caught off guard. "Wh-What? Whatever gave you that idea? Of course he doesn't...Akatsuki is not in love with Ruka. No-no-no," he spluttered.

Yuuki raised one eyebrow elegantly. "Remind me to never tell you any secret, Hanabusa," she said, rolling her eyes. "Ok, so Akatsuki has romantic feelings for Ruka," she continued on, ignoring Hanabusa's cries of protest. "And it frustrates both of us that neither of them act on their feelings. What we, as both their friends, must do is to, let's put it as 'setting them up'."

"What?" Hanabusa asked incredulously. "You're assuming that Ruka actually has feelings for Akatsuki, and it's pretty obvious she doesn't. It's all Kaname here and Kaname there."

"Ruka is too blinded by Kaname's supposed 'awesomeness' to see the truth. She can't look at another man romantically. That's why she hasn't realised Akatsuki's feelings for her, and she doesn't realise that she herself has feelings for him too."

"How do you know she has feelings for him?" Hanabusa asked curiously.

"Remember the dinner dance? When Akatsuki attempted to ask Ruka for a dance but failed because he was an inelegant, dim-witted idiot?"

"You'll have such affectionate relationships with your boyfriends," Hanabusa said sardonically.

Yuuki glared at him, before continuing, "Anyway, they still danced together. And when they finished, Ruka was leaning in towards him, giving clear signs that she wanted to 'seal the deal' as it was, before Kaname walked in and spoiled the moment."

"So?"

"So, I'm saying that we bring out that side of Ruka, so that she begins to realise that she actually feels something for Akatsuki."

"This plan of yours still relies on the assumption that Ruka has feelings for Akatsuki," Hanabusa said.

"It's not an assumption, Hanabusa. It's there. It's just simmering under the surface," Yuuki replied confidently.

"Fine," Hanabusa relented. "Let's say that you're right. How do you plan on bringing that side of Ruka out?"

"Well, I'd say dinner's a good way to start, don't you think?"

"What?" Hanabusa asked, a little shocked. "You want to ask them to have dinner together? Like a date?"

Yuuki laughed. "Of course it's not that simple! Do you think I would come up with something _that _unsophisticated?"

"Is it wrong to think that you would?" Hanabusa asked her pointedly.

Yuuki narrowed her eyes. "My plan involves the four of us going to dinner together." Before Hanabusa could interrupt, she continued, "That's what we tell them we're doing. However, both of us come up with an excuse to skip the dinner, so it will be just the two of them, like a date," she finished in satisfaction.

"But...if we tell them we can't make it, wouldn't they just cancel it?"

"We tell them we'll be late, and then once they're there, we cancel," Yuuki explained.

"I'm still not convinced that this will somehow activate Ruka's inner love for Akatsuki. In fact, this plan has so many holes in it, it's guaranteed to _not _work. "

"Oh, come on, Hanabusa! It's a game of chance. We set the board, roll the dice and see where everything ends up. I'm not saying that this is guaranteed to work, I'm just saying that things will sort themselves up. We just need to...nudge it in the right direction," Yuuki said.

"So...you don't actually know if this grand plan of yours will work or not?"

"There's only two possibilities. Ether they cancel the dinner, or they have a great time. Even if they did cancel the dinner, it won't be weird because it's our fault we couldn't make it. However, if the night turns out to be an awesome night then...who knows?" Yuuki smiled.

"What if Akatsuki made a fool of himself like before? Or what if they suspect something?"

"The answer to the first question is 'I don't know'. However, we can quite safely assume that Akatsuki learnt his lesson the first time, so pray that he won't be such an idiot again."

"You didn't answer the second question," Hanabusa pointed out.

"That's because I also don't know," Yuuki grinned as Hanabusa gave her a look of dismay. "Look, if you really want me to break your leg for real, then I'll be happy to do it."

Hanabusa bit his lip, considering the chances of their shoddily conAstructed plan to 'set Akatsuki and Ruka up' actually being a success, before deciding. "Okay, okay. I'll go along with this...plan of yours. If it fails, however, you're cleaning up the mess yourself. And no breaking legs, or arms," he added.

Yuuki smiled. "Sweet." And then, as if as a second thought, she added, "Do you want to bet on who asks the other out first?"

"Huh?" Hanabusa asked confusedly.

"If Ruka asks Akatsuki out first, I win. If Akatsuki asks Ruka out first, then you win. Deal?"

"What's the reward?"

"$50?"

Hanabusa thought for a moment, before agreeing. "Fair enough." As soon as he agreed, he regretted his decision. Akatsuki was such a coward when it comes to Ruka that it was almost a given who would be the one to ask the other. Hanabusa mentally cursed himself.

As the two friends shook their hand, they realised that they were not only agreeing to a bet, they were also agreeing to take part in a plan that could either result in happiness for their two best friends, or a lifetime of awkwardness between all four of them, particularly between Akatsuki and Ruka. The handshake had a tentative feel to it, as if none of the two felt overly confident that their plan would work. However, once it was done, they realised that what mattered the most was their best friends, and that hardened their resolve. Yuuki and Hanabusa both felt frustrated at their friends' lack of action, and also felt that it was up to them to sort things out. Nonetheless, they knew that if everything didn't go well, and Ruka and Akatsuki found out that it was them two who planned the whole thing, it was obvious how things would turn out. None of them wanted to dwell too much on that possibility.

"Well," Hanabusa yawned. "If that's all then I'm off to bed."

He leaped off the tree branch and landed lightly on the grass below, stretching his arms. Yuuki shook her head at Hanabusa and sighed. She leaned back against the tree trunk and gazed at the night sky. She felt both excited and apprehensive about her plan, but she also couldn't shake off the feeling that something was going to happen very soon that would change all of their lives drastically. She shook off that ominous feeling, deciding that there were too many things happening in her life right now to be worrying about the future. For now, all she would worry about was getting Akatsuki and Ruka together. Everything else was, for the moment anyway, not her primary concern.

Yuuki yawned widely, surprised at how tired she was. Just like Hanabusa, she leapt off the branch, plunging downwards at an incredible speed before landing without any visible difficulty. As she strolled towards home, she realised just how fast things were moving in such a short period of time. _There's going to be very interesting times ahead,_ she mused. At that moment, Yuuki couldn't have known that her thoughts were ominously close to what fate held in store for her and her friends...

_-_

_-_

-Chapter End-


	6. A Dinner for Two

**Chapter 6: A Dinner for Two**

"It's not going to work," Hanabusa said for the tenth time.

"Oh, shut up, Hanabusa. We're just inviting them for dinner," Yuuki retorted.

"You have no idea how lame that sounds when you say it out loud," Hanabusa replied, rolling his eyes. "Besides, the logical question would be: what's the occasion? So, what's your reason?"

Yuuki was silent for a moment, her face thoughtful. Hanabusa started to open his mouth, intending to berate her for not thinking this through. Both of them were on their way to find Ruka and Akatsuki. It was part of Yuuki's mad plan to set them up. Hanabusa feared that this poorly thought out plan was going to be end of their friendships with each other. Particularly if the other two found out the reason behind Yuuki inviting them to dinner. _It seriously does sound lame,_ Hanabusa thought with a grimace. He did not have a good feeling about this.

"Both of us felt a sudden urge to do something that could express our deep love for each other," Yuuki spoke suddenly.

Hanabusa looked at her with a mixture of horror and incredulity.

"That's your reason? Firstly, the first thing that comes to mind when you say 'sudden urge to do something that could express our deep love for each other', is _not_ having dinner at a fancy restaurant," Hanabusa grinned. Yuuki looked at him in disgust. "Sorry, couldn't help it. But seriously though, expressing our 'deep love' for each other can be done through other ways. Like, going to the beach, or eating somewhere more casual. Certainly not a freaking posh restaurant that actually requires one to dress up." Before Yuuki could retort, Hanabusa continued on, "Yuuki! New plan. I say, dinner at Antonio's."

"Antonio's? You mean the small Italian restaurant a couple blocks down?"

"Yes, they have the best pizzas. It's casual, it's inexpensive and it's good. So, why not?"

"Hardly the place where romantic sparks can fly," Yuuki replied with a frown.

"Yeah sure, like the restaurant you want to go _won't_ be awkward for the two of them when they're alone together," Hanabusa rolled his eyes. "Look, it's baby steps, Yuuki. Start with something casual, and when it looks like it's working, take bigger steps. Trust me," Hanabusa winked.

"Trust you?" Yuuki asked derisively. "Hmm...taking advice from Hanabusa, let's see...not a good idea."

"Whatever, Yuuki. Just think about how you feel if you were put in the same position. Stuck with someone you sort of have feelings for, which by the way, makes conversation very awkward, all dressed up and no way of politely leaving the place. How bad would that be, particularly if you have to stay there for at least 2 courses. Now replace that restaurant with a casual pizzeria. People are laughing around you, eating pizza, music is blaring somewhere. So much easier to hold a conversation when you're not so concerned with how you look and when the atmosphere is fun," Hanabusa said, without a hint of humour.

Yuuki frowned. Rarely did Hanabusa offer such disturbingly logical advice, and with no visible ulterior motive. Yuuki realised that it was because Hanabusa cared a lot about Ruka and Akatsuki. The realisation made her smile inside. Just when she thought she had Hanabusa all figured out...

"Ok, you win. Antonio's it is. Shall we go find them?" Yuuki asked with a smile.

"Yuuki! Hanabusa!" A voice called out.

Both of them turned to see Akatsuki and Ruka walking towards them. Hanabusa and Yuuki exchanged a look before Yuuki turned and spoke to the two impossibly beautiful vampires approaching them.

"Morning, Ruka! Morning, Akatsuki!" Yuuki hesitated, as if still deciding whether to continue with the plan or not. She visibly drew a breath before speaking. "Hey, do you guys want to have dinner or something? Tonight?"

Ruka and Akatsuki looked at her questioningly. "What's the occasion?" Akatsuki asked.

Hanabusa smirked. Yuuki ignored him before replying, "Well...I just thought that it's been awhile since we all actually hung out together. So, I figured, why not have a fun night out? Let's have dinner at Antonio's."

The other two turned to look at each other for a moment, before they turned back to Yuuki. Ruka shrugged. "Why not? Surprisingly, I feel like eating pizza. It actually has been awhile since us four hung out," Ruka smiled. Akatsuki nodded in agreement. Yuuki inwardly sighed in relief. At least the first part of the plan was a success.

"Great! Hanabusa and I are going to be away for the day, but we'll meet you there at say, half past six?" Yuuki said. Hanabusa looked at her in surprise. He wasn't aware of this part of the plan. Yuuki silenced any potential question he might have by giving him a look.

"Where are you guys going?" Ruka asked questioningly.

"Oh..." Yuuki hesitated, unprepared. The silence that would have followed was cut short by Hanabusa, who replied, "Shopping." Yuuki stared at him in bewilderment. This time, it was Hanabusa who gave the look to her.

Ruka and Akatsuki stared at them in suspicion, sensing that there was something amiss in this situation. There was an awkward silence, before Hanabusa took hold of Yuuki's arm, and dragged her away, ignoring her cries of protests.

"I'll book the table under my name!" Yuuki yelled back as she tried to pry Hanabusa's fingers off her. Akatsuki and Ruka stared at their retreating backs in bewilderment.

"What the hell is up with those two?" Akatsuki asked, wide-eyed.

"No idea," Ruka replied. "You know, something is going on with those two."

"Amazing observation skills there, Ruka," Akatsuki said sarcastically. "But if their relationship is more than friendly, I'll kill Yuuki simply because she chose someone like Hanabusa."

"Aren't you two supposed to be best friends?"

"Yes. But that doesn't mean I can't say Hanabusa is a thick-headed idiot." Akatsuki replied, running his hand through his hair.

* * *

"Oi, Hanabusa! Let me go, you thick-headed idiot!" Yuuki said angrily.

Hanabusa let go of her arms, and raised his arms in surrender. He shrugged, "It was getting a bit awkward. I saved our necks. Be thankful."

"Because now them two will think there's something going on? Yea, I'll be thankful for that," Yuuki muttered darkly.

"Well, after seeing you fail at improvisation, I took matters into my own hands. You can be thankful of that."

"Shopping? Seriously? That was what you came up with?"

"Hey, at least it was better than you trying to come up with a plausible excuse, a.k.a. awkward silence," Hanabusa said mockingly.

Yuuki muttered something inaudible, which Hanabusa presumed to be something directed at him, before asking, "Have you come up with what our excuses are going to be for not showing up?"

"We were so focused on our shopping that we forgot the time and decided to eat elsewhere?"

"That's so believable," Yuuki said sarcastically.

"Well you come up with something them," Hanabusa rolled his eyes.

Yuuki lowered her eyebrows. "Come on, we have about to do 7 hours of shopping and also be in a fake accident." With that, she started walking away from him.

"So that's our excuse now?" Hanabusa called as he followed her.

* * *

Ruka and Akatsuki arrived at the restaurant about 10 minutes before the appointed time. The place was almost fully booked out, which said something about the quality of food served there. As Hanabusa described, everyone dining there were either laughing, eating or holding very loud conversations. The smell of freshly cooked pizzas made Akatsuki salivate. Ruka was inwardly thankful that she didn't wear the dress she was planning to wear. She would have looked very out of place in this situation. Instead, she had opted for jeans with a top and belt. Akatsuki was also dressed in jeans and shirt, with his trademark top buttons unbuttoned. As the two figures walked into the restaurant, they were met with glances from almost everyone there. This could be explained through their tall bodies, Akatsuki's body and the shirt which offered a tantalising peek at what laid behind the fabric, Ruka's slender figure and both of their beautiful faces. Trying hard to ignore everyone else, the two vampires made their way to the reception counter.

"Hi. I think there was a reservation under the name Yuuki," Akatsuki told the female receptionist. She eyed him with undisguised admiration.

"Yes, there was. The table's easy to find. It's the only empty one," she laughed in a manner that could only be described as artificial. Ruka rolled her eyes. She had seen girls who have acted worse.

Akatsuki thanked the receptionist, and made his way to the table at the far end of the dining area. The walk there was already made awkward by people staring at him, but his tall body only made it worse to navigate through the crowd. It was hard trying not to bump into people, but on more than one occasion, Akatsuki wondered if some of the ladies there had purposely bumped into him. Ruka followed behind him, her walk made easier due to Akatsuki clearing the way for her. There was more than one wolf whistle that sounded as she walked towards the table. The crowd was no doubt less civilised than if they were at a higher-classed restaurant. After much pushing and excuse-mes, they finally sat down at the four seated table. A waitress came and set down a couple of menus.

"Wonder where the other two are?" Ruka asked as she studied the list of pizzas offered.

"Probably staring at the sunset holding hands together somewhere," Akatsuki replied, also studying the menu.

"You do realise how hilarious it would be if they started going out together?" Ruka laughed at the thought of Yuuki and Hanabusa together.

"It would be-" Akatsuki was cut off by his mobile phone ringing.

Akatsuki answered it. "Hello?"

"Hey, Akatsuki," Yuuki's voice sounded from the other end of the line. "You guys are probably there already, but I'm calling to tell you that we can't make it."

"What?" Akatsuki asked loudly. Then, seeing Ruka's questioning look, he said, "You can't make it? "Why? What's going on?"" Ruka mouthed.

Akatsuki shook his head. "What happened?"

"Got caught in an accident on the way back. Traffic's blocked completely. We won't make it in time. I'm so sorry," Yuuki said.

Akatsuki's eyes widened. "You're in an accident?" Ruka stared at him in horror.

"No, not us. Some jackass tried to pass the red light. No one's hurt though. Just some smashed cars in the middle of the road and we're stuck. Just have the dinner by yourselves, alright?"

It was then that Akatsuki realised that it was going to be just him and Ruka eating together. He gulped. "Umm...are you positive you can't make it?"

"Yes! We've been stuck for almost half an hour now and we're nowhere close to you guys. It's ok, we'll find some place else to eat."

"Alright..." Akatsuki hesitated.

"Look, I gotta go. Have fun, yea?" With that, Yuuki hung up.

Akatsuki closed his phone, and turned towards Ruka. He was suddenly aware that they hadn't even ordered yet.

"They're stuck in an accident and can't make it. It's going to be just us," Akatsuki half-smiled, trying to steady his rapidly accelerating heartbeat. Somewhere in the back of his mind, he had a suspicion that something was very wrong. But that thought was buried beneath the mixture of emotions he was currently feeling.

"Oh, dear," Ruka remarked concernedly. "I hope they're okay."

"Yea, they're fine. It wasn't them. It was someone else. The road's blocked so they can't get out."

"Oh," Ruka said, still looking worried.

"If you want to leave, it's fine," Akatsuki said to her.

Ruka looked at him in puzzlement. "Why would you think I wanted to leave?"

Akatsuki hesitated. "Well...I thought it might be weird, you know, just two of us eating together in a place like this."

"Why is it weird? Can't two friends have hang out alone?" Ruka asked.

_It's not weird for you because that's all I am to you: a friend, _Akatsuki thought bitterly. Outwardly, he smiled. "Of course. What was I thinking? So, you ready to order?" he asked casually. His ability to hide his emotions so well marvelled even him.

"Do you want to get individual serves or one big one?" Ruka asked him, unaware of how she had unknowingly hurt Akatsuki.

"Why don't we get two mediums? We could share and it won't be just one type," Akatsuki said.

"That sounds good," Ruka agreed. She raised her hand to signal a passing waiter, who approached their table carrying a pad and pen.

"Can I help you?" he asked, eyeing Ruka.

Akatsuki suppressed a burst of annoyance, and answered, "Yes, can we please have a medium House Special and a medium Four Seasons?"

"No worries. Drinks?"

"I'll have a soda," Akatsuki said.

"Make that two," Ruka added, smiling at the waiter.

"Anything for the beautiful lady," the waiter smiled back. He gathered up the menus and left the table with their orders.

Akatsuki growled inwardly. "The things people will say for a tip," he remarked in irritation.

"Well, I can't say it doesn't work. He's quite cute, you know," Ruka said teasingly.

"Oh, you can't be serious," Akatsuki replied, not without worry. "Him? I'm disappointed, Ruka."

"I'm joking, Akatsuki," Ruka assured him with a smile.

"Of course you are. When you know someone like Kaname, you can't look at anyone else, can you?" Akatsuki said carelessly.

Ruka looked at him wide-eyed, her smile fading. "Someone's not in a good mood today, are they?" she asked, a little annoyed. "And that last comment was uncalled for. I can appreciate a nice guy. It's just that they are a little hard to come by these days, as shown by you."

Akatsuki mentally punched himself. "I'm sorry, Ruka. That was...careless of me."

Ruka looked at him disdainfully for a moment. And then she smiled. "Come on, what is this? We're supposed to be hanging out and having fun."

"You're right," Akatsuki smiled back. There was a slight pause. "So, anyway, today I had the most..."

What followed was possibly the happiest Akatsuki had ever been, besides the night he danced with Ruka at the dinner dance. He and Ruka talked, ate, and talked more. It was completely unreal. Akatsuki couldn't believe that he was able to hold a conversation with her alone for more than two sentences without it becoming awkward. He was a little proud of that.

At one point, he laughed inwardly at the thought at how they used to sit together and talk all night long when they were young. When one was just a child, life was so much simple. Puberty, however was inevitable. That meant growing a whole heap taller and bigger, but it also meant growing a whole heap of unwanted and complicated emotions. He had already suspected he was feeling something for Ruka when he was just eight. However, he was...just eight. A child's mind couldn't have made sense of his emotions. However, a teenager's mind certainly could. One day, he would be talking and laughing normally with Ruka. The next day, it was as if Ruka had become a stranger to him. Everything he said felt strange and stupid, and he started to appreciate what a beauty Ruka had become. It became harder to look at her as a friend as he grew older. Try as he might, he couldn't resist staring at her, sometimes for long periods of time. He would blush if his mind started wandering to certain places. Her body became a very, very attractive figure. Akatsuki sometimes felt guilty, and very confused when thinking about her. It felt like he was betraying her in a twisted kind of way. As if he was betraying their friendship by thinking about her in a more-than-friendly way. It was awhile before he started to realise what he was feeling. Perhaps it wasn't love in the beginning. Perhaps it was what every other boy felt- desire. However, the more he was around her, the more his feelings began to develop. He realised that what he wanted from Ruka wasn't just to try and score with her. He wanted to actually be with her, care for her, make sure she was safe all the time. He tried hard to ignore that feeling. He didn't want to damage their friendship by saying that he had feelings for her. No, Akatsuki was quite content with watching her by the sidelines.

The day that he unconsciously said to himself, 'I love her', was the day that he realised he couldn't ignore his feelings for her. It hurt him to see her but not being able to with her. He despised himself for being a coward, not being able to confront her and tell her how he felt. Perhaps he was afraid of rejection, of being laughed at, of losing his friendship, or even of being accepted. He didn't know the slightest thing about being a boyfriend. He was even more afraid of having awkward silences with her, not being able to hold a proper conversation without feeling like a complete idiot. Puberty might have given him a face and body to die for (as quoted by Hanabusa), but it had taken away his innocence and any hope that he would ever be able to act the way he could when he was a child around Ruka. For that, Akatsuki cursed himself.

Akatsuki and Ruka's conversation was only halted once with the arrival of the pizzas. The pizzas were worthy of their fame, and both of them savoured every bite.

"Wow, you're not holding back tonight, are you? Isn't it against your rule? Eating so much?" Akatsuki remarked as Ruka started her third piece.

"That is ridiculous. I can eat as much as I want. Can't a vampire indulge in a bit of human food once in a while?" Ruka retorted.

"I wouldn't call that a bit," Akatsuki laughed.

"Speak for yourself, Mr I-just-finished-my-ninth-piece-of-pizza," Ruka said, lowering her eyebrows at him.

"Hey, I need to make sure all 6 feet of my body get enough energy," Akatsuki smiled.

"And isn't this against _your_ rule as well? Surely you don't want your chest getting too soft, do you?" Ruka laughed. "That would be a major turn off for the ladies."

Akatsuki shrugged. "It's not like I actually reciprocate their feelings. It's hard to have a romantic relationship with a human, you know? It's hard to resist biting them when they get too intimate."

"Oh, you would know. Ever had a relationship with a human?

"No, and I don't plan to." He thought for a moment. "Then again, a hundred years from now, I might just decide to pursue one just for fun. After all, I can't exactly spend all of my immortal life alone now, can I?"

Ruka laughed. "Seriously? So, you don't have anyone in mind when it comes to romantic relationships?"

Silence.

Long silence.

_Yes, I do. It's you. _For a moment, Akatsuki was horrified that he had spoken those words out loud. But Ruka's expression remained questioning. He felt relieved. He had been going fine the whole night. But now, when she asked the question that had hit very close to his heart, he couldn't think properly. _Say something, _his mind screamed at him, afraid that she might suspect something.

And Ruka certainly was suspecting something. She frowned at him, obviously sensing that something wasn't right.

"Akatsuki? Are you alright?" she asked concernedly. "It's like you had a stroke or something."

"No, I'm fine," he managed to croak out.

"Look, if this is about...I'm sorry. I didn't mean to pry. It's fine if you don't want to tell me," Ruka said, slightly embarrassed.

"No, no...it's fine. I just had a moment of...indecision." He was telling the truth. Within all the chaos in his mind, he was actually debating whether to tell her about his feelings or not. However, for some reason, he couldn't bring himself to tell her. It all came back to 'I'm-afraid-she-will-reject-me'. For about the thousandth time in his life, Akatsuki cursed himself.

"Umm...okay. If you say so," Ruka said with a little hesitance. There was an awkward moment before she smiled at him. "Hey, so did you want to order dessert? Or was that tenth slice enough?"

"Oh, no, it's fine," Akatsuki replied, suddenly aware that he had said 'fine' one too many times. "My jeans feel tight already. I think it's a sign that if I have dessert, I'll have to triple my gym hours."

"Alright then. I have to agree with you. Tonight, I ate with...what was the expression, _wild abandon_."

Akatsuki smiled as he signalled for the waiter to bring the bill. When he got it, he billed it onto his credit card.

"Wait, what are you doing?" Ruka asked as he picked up the pen to sign the bill.

"Paying, of course."

"What? No, that's unfair. I have to share at least half the cost," Ruka said, pulling out her purse.

"Too late, signed it," Akatsuki smiled as he finished signing it and handed the bill to the waiter.

Ruka leaned back with a hint of exasperation. "Always the chivalrous knight, aren't you?"

"I ate about three times more than you. I think that means I have to pay for it."

"No..." Ruka began.

"Look," Akatsuki held up his hand to stop her. "You can treat me next time, ok?"

Ruka pursed her lips. "Alright then. Thanks."

"No problem," Akatsuki said as he got up. Ruka stood up as well. Together, they made their way to the exit. The place was still packed with people, and would be packed for quite some time too. The noise of the place was abruptly silenced when the two vampires closed the door behind them and walked out onto the street.

It was a clear and crisp night. The crescent moon was shining brightly, surrounded by a multitude of small, winking stars. It was almost eight o' clock, but that still meant no shortage of people dressed in work clothes walking on the pavement next to the bustling roads, tired after a hard day's work. In the distance, the city shone with its multi-coloured lights.

"Shall we?" Akatsuki asked Ruka, indicating to walk back to the school dormitories.

"You know, I've missed eating pizzas," Ruka remarked, as they walked side by side past other pedestrians.

"That's because your strict diet doesn't allow such...indulgence," Akatsuki replied. It was quite true. Ruka's daily meals always consisted of vegetables, lean meat and occasionally some sweets. Akatsuki had wondered on more than one occasion how one could survive on such foods.

"I have to, as you say, _indulge_ once in awhile or I'll go mad from all those vegetables," Ruka smiled.

"So, do you have to fast for a week after tonight to get rid of all that fat you just consumed?"

"Actually, I think a few good hours at the gym should do it," she said, before catching sight of Akatsuki's grin. "Oh, seriously Akatsuki...I'm not _that_ concerned about my weight." She was met with a disbelieving look. "Fine, so I'm regretting the pizzas already. But, it was eating with good company. I don't regret that part."

They arrived at the gate of the school. It was still open, given that it was still so early at night. The gates would shut at midnight, to ensure no intruders entered, and no vampires exited.

Akatsuki turned to face Ruka. "You...What did you say?"

"I said, I don't regret spending this evening with you." Ruka said, looking him in the eye.

Perhaps it was how she gazed at him with those eyes of hers. Perhaps it was what she had just said. Or perhaps it was sheer impulsiveness and his sudden unexplainable and uncontrollable desire. Whatever Akatsuki had thought, being afraid of rejection, not wanting to ruin their friendship, it all disappeared in that moment. Suddenly, he found himself leaning towards her. He could feel her breath against his face as she let out a small gasp. Her eyes, her lips, her face mesmerised him, and before he could stop himself, he felt his lips brushing against hers. In that moment of madness, Akatsuki's couldn't think of anything but her. All he could hear was the rapid thumping of his heart. It was a soft kiss, light as a feather. For that timeless moment, Akatsuki felt a moment of sheer bliss.

But time is a cruel thing. For because of time, reality must return. For Akatsuki, reality came back to him as if a huge bucket of water had just been poured over him. His mind started to think properly, and it screamed hard at him. Akatsuki jerked away from Ruka. He saw her staring at him in utter shock and in a moment of terrifying realisation, he realised what he had just done. There was another timeless moment, this time it was a moment of horror and disbelief. A second later, Akatsuki ran off. To the normal human eye, there would have been a sudden blur of movement before Akatsuki disappeared. The superhuman speed of vampires would have made it appear so.

Ruka was also in a state of shock. One second, she was looking at Akatsuki. The next, he was kissing her. Ruka couldn't think properly. She couldn't make any sense of what had just happened. However, she did wonder about a lot of things as she stood at the gate alone. She wondered why Akatsuki had kissed her, why her heart was racing, why Akatsuki had ran off, and most importantly, why she had felt a moment of regret when Akatsuki had abruptly ended the kiss.

_Akatsuki?_

-

-

-Chapter End-

* * *

Hey guys! Thanks for reading! And thanks too for the reviews. Much appreciated =) But do tell me how you guys feel about my writing so I can improve hehe...Cheers!


	7. Confrontation

**Chapter 7: Confrontation**

Ruka was annoyed. Annoyed, confused and impatient. The usual crowding of students as they simultaneously headed for the exit after class was getting on her nerves. Had Ruka been a normal human, she might have used this opportunity to stare at each and every one of the impossibly perfect and beautiful people that were in the room. However, Ruka had only one current intention: to get out of the room as quickly as possible. But the mob of vampires that was also heading out of the ridiculously small door was preventing her from exiting. The reason behind her impatience wasn't because dawn was only an hour away. It was because the person she desperately wanted to talk to was already out the door and would disappear for the rest of the day. Ruka tried to push her way through the door, but by the time she got outside, she couldn't see him anywhere in sight. Ruka bit her lip in frustration.

Akatsuki was mortified. Mortified, confused and very scared. He considered himself extremely lucky because he sat very near the door of the classroom. This meant that he could exit the room as soon as the class was finished. This in turn, meant that Ruka could not catch up to him in time because she sat at the back of the class. For two days now, he had literally run out of the class as soon as the lecturer said 'End of class'. For two days, he had managed to avoid talking to Ruka or giving her a chance to talk to him. Akatsuki knew that this couldn't go on forever, but at least it gave him time to think about the consequences of what he had done, and also to think of a suitable response for her when she finally caught up to him. Right now though, he would do what he had done for the past two days when dawn came: lock himself in his room.

Yuuki observed as Ruka again stood outside the classroom. She saw her ball her fists in apparent anger. Yuuki couldn't make any sense out of it. This had happened for two days now. Every time Yuuki tried to ask Ruka about it, she would change the subject or end the conversation altogether. She had also tried asking Ruka about the dinner a few nights ago. This usually ended with Ruka shutting up immediately and looking stricken. Something had happened that night, and Yuuki fully intended to find out what it was. But from the looks of it, it wasn't something good.

"Yuuki!" Yuuki jerked out of her reverie at the sudden shout. It was Ruka, who was walking up to her. "I need to talk to you."

"Hanabusa," Akatsuki called to the person in the bed opposite him.

"What?" Hanabusa asked with a hint of annoyance that he had woken him up.

"I need to talk to you."

* * *

Yuuki sat down on her bed while Ruka landed heavily on a chair a few feet away.

"What's the matter, Ruka?" Yuuki asked concernedly.

Ruka was silent for a few moments. She appeared to be deciding on whether to tell Yuuki or not. What she wanted to talk about, Yuuki had absolutely no idea. Ruka sighed, rubbing her temples.

"Something happened, that night after we had dinner at Antonio's."

Yuuki was right. Something did happen that night.

"What happened?"

Ruka took a deep breath. "He kissed me."

Yuuki's eyes widened. She actually gasped. When Hanabusa and she were planning this, they genuinely did not think that this would actually happen. But according to Ruka, Akatsuki actually kissed her. Yuuki didn't know whether to feel elated or scared. Elated because Akatsuki had finally manned up and kissed her, and scared because she didn't know how things would progress from here onwards. One misstep on either party would cause the end of their friendship.

"He...kissed you?"

Ruka nodded heavily. "Yes, it happened outside the school gate. Rather...suddenly."

"You mean the kiss-on-the-cheek or the serious kiss-on-the-lips?"

"The latter." Ruka mumbled.

Yuuki felt like clapping for Akatsuki. "So, what did you think?"

Ruka looked at her incredulously. "Excuse me?"

"I didn't mean it like... I meant, how did you feel after it happened?" Yuuki didn't know how else to phrase her question tactfully.

"I...I was confused, to say the very least," Ruka confessed. "But, I was.._.am_ confused still. I mean, it happened so suddenly and out of the blue. One minute I was looking at him and the next he was..." Ruka trailed off, looking stricken.

"But...you didn't _not_ like it?" Yuuki asked, afraid she was pushing it too far.

"I don't know what to think, Yuuki. I can say that I was shocked. But I can't say that I regret it. My mind is a whirlpool of emotions at the moment. It's just so _confusing_ because he never showed any interest in me. It was just out of the blue, you know?" Ruka admitted.

"Oh, he was interested," Yuuki remarked. "He just didn't, _couldn't_ show it to you."

"You knew?" Ruka asked wide-eyed.

"I..." Yuuki hesitated. "I could tell that you meant something to him from the way he acted around you."

"Really? I couldn't tell. Maybe it's because I just saw him as a friend, that's why I never noticed that he felt that way."

"Oh, really? Just a friend?" Yuuki asked incredulously. "Ruka, you said you don't regret him kissing you. That can only mean one thing, and that is you have feelings for Akatsuki."

"No!" Ruka denied that statement. "I...I don't know why I'm not feeling angry at Akatsuki for doing it, but it doesn't mean I like him or anything..." she faltered under Yuuki's stare.

"You're not feeling horrified?"

"What? Why would I feel that way?"

"Exactly, you don't. Because deep inside, you actually wanted him to kiss you," Yuuki ignored Ruka's weak protests. "Ruka, don't deny it any longer. Admit it, you have feelings for Akatsuki. I know it's strange, because both of you are very close friends, and to admit you like each other is daunting. You are afraid of being in a relationship with him because you're afraid it might not work out. When that happens, you risk destroying your friendship. That is why, both of you won't admit to each other your true feelings."

"Since when did you become such an expert on relationships?"

"Since I've watched the both of you struggle with your emotions. On one hand, you have Akatsuki trying to ignore his feelings for you, trying to act normally around the person he likes. On the other hand, there's you, trying to cling on to Kaname despite knowing there's no future there. For goodness sake, why won't you just tell Akatsuki how you feel?"

"How do you know I like Akatsuki?" Ruka asked, annoyed by Yuuki's words.

"Do you really need to pretend you don't have feelings for him?" Yuuki asked impatiently.

"Look, don't sit there and pretend you know everything, ok?" Ruka said angrily. "Just because he kissed me and I didn't slap him doesn't mind we're in love. Besides, even if I did have feelings for him, did you think admitting to one of your closest friends you like him is going to be easy? Stop trying to play the matchmaker. You don't understand anything, Yuuki. So please, don't pretend to. It only annoys the hell out of people, ok?" Ruka had been increasing her volume with every word. And so by the time she finished the last sentence, she was almost shouting at Yuuki.

There was a silence. And then, Yuuki replied coldly. "I understand very well what's going on here, Ruka. It's you who doesn't understand anything. You are blind, Ruka. But you know what, suit yourself. I won't bother with your personal life anymore. It's not my life that's ruined, it's yours. If you know what's good for you, you will do what I say and confront Akatsuki. If you don't want to, then have fun being miserable for the rest of your pathetic life." Yuuki stood up and stormed out the door.

Ruka sat there without moving for several minutes. Her vision slowly became blurry, and then the first teardrop slid down her cheek, followed by many more. She sobbed quietly for awhile, her mind a whirlpool of emotions that she would have happily discarded if possible. For awhile, she didn't try to make sense of her emotions. All she wanted to do was to cry, and cry. She wished that Akatsuki would comfort her like before. Before all of this happened. Before he kissed her. When she was upset, it was always Akatsuki who knew first, and it was him who would know what to say to her to comfort her. He knew how to make her laugh when she was down. When she cried, it was his shoulder she cried on. However, Ruka doubted he could ever act that way towards her again. At least, not in a mere friendly manner.

_Damn you, Akatsuki. Why did you have to complicate things,_ she cursed silently. And then she began to think about what Yuuki had said. Was it true? Does she really have feelings for Akatsuki? The more Ruka thought about it, the more she realised that Yuuki was right. Ruka didn't know when it began, but its progress was slow. Slow enough for her not to realise it was happening, but it had progressed to a point where even Ruka herself couldn't deny it. Ruka realised that Akatsuki had been on her mind constantly for a long time now. She thought about him very often, usually replaying the moments she had with him during the day. She actually felt jealous when other girls stared at him. She treasured every moment she had with him. During class, Ruka, unconsciously, would keep looking at Akatsuki, as if to check if he was still there or not. Whenever Akatsuki was absent from class, usually when he was off to kill Level Es, she would feel empty inside.

_Oh my god, _she thought. _I have feelings for Akatsuki. _The realisation shocked her to the point where she froze for several seconds. Fear and excitement coursed through her body. She didn't know what to do. Should she confront him and tell him? Or should she keep silent and leave the matter unresolved? She almost chose the latter option. There was too much at risk for them to attempt at a relationship. But then she realised, she didn't want to feel that emptiness inside her. She wanted to stay close to him every moment. She knew that if she didn't confront this matter, she would regret it for the rest of her life. She decided that should her friendship with him be ruined, she would at least know that she tried to make it work. And that, she knew, was something she would never regret.

* * *

"Akatsuki, what's the matter?" Hanabusa asked worriedly, sensing that Akatsuki was extremely upset.

"Hanabusa, something happened that night after we had dinner at Antonio's," said Akatsuki, his words disturbingly similar to Ruka's.

"What happened?" asked Hanabusa curiously.

"I...kissed her," Akatsuki said quietly, placing his head in his hands.

Hanabusa's reaction was similar to Yuuki's. He felt shocked that Akatsuki actually kissed her, but he also felt elated because his friend had finally made the move. Hanabusa was silent for a moment, trying to digest this latest turn of events.

"Is there an explanation to why you kissed her? Since you never even hinted to her that you had feelings for her, kissing her seems a bit...extreme, don't you think?"

"I don't know what came over me, ok? We were just looking at each other, and then it was as if something took over my body and I kissed her. Oh god, I've screwed things up so bad..." Akatsuki muttered in despair.

"Well, did she like, push you away or something?"

"No, but that could be because the kiss lasted for about a second, and then I..." Akatsuki trailed off.

"And then you what? Oh, please don't say you ran away. Please."

Akatsuki bowed his head. Hanabusa closed his eyes. "Akatsuki, let's get this straight. You kissed Ruka suddenly, and you _ran away?_ Gods, Akatsuki, it was the perfect time to tell her you like her, wasn't it?"

"Look, I _kissed_ Ruka when I couldn't even tell her I like her. Did you think that at that moment, I was thinking about giving her a speech about me liking her? Of course I had to make a run for it. I don't even know what she thinks about me now."

"That's because you've been ignoring her, idiot," Hanabusa said, rolling his eyes. "Look, you can't keep rushing out of class and locking yourself in your room forever. Sooner or later, she's going to catch up to you, and you will inevitably have to confront her. Wouldn't it be better if the confrontation happened sooner than later?"

"You're right. But I cannot ask her to reciprocate my feelings. It will be too much for our already fragile friendship to handle. I have to tell her that I won't pursue the relationship, because I know it will never work. It'll be better if we just stay as friends, or at least try to stay as friends if that's still possible. Yes, that's what I'll do," Akatsuki said, more to himself than to Hanabusa.

"Are you sure about that, Akatsuki? Are you sure you won't regret this five years down the line? Maybe it's worth the try to pursue this, you know?"

"Look, it's _my_ life that's potentially going to blow up in my face. Just...leave me alone for now, will you? I need some time to think."

With that, Akatsuki lay down on his bed and pulled the covers over his face. Hanabusa looked at him with a mixture of sympathy and impatience. He walked over and sat down on his own bed.

"I'm sorry," Hanabusa whispered, before lying down.

Akatsuki would manage to avoid Ruka for another three days. He wasn't ready to confront her yet, and he didn't know what to say when he did confront her. During this time, Ruka's impatience reached boiling point. She swore that she would give Akatsuki a good, solid slap to the face when she met him. But to do that, she would have to catch him after class, something that she was finding extremely hard to do. Akatsuki was tall and well built, but he was also very good at making himself disappear if he wanted to. However, even a master can be outsmarted. So on the fourth day after Ruka and Akatsuki confessed to their respective best friends, Ruka succeeded in cornering Akatsuki.

She actually had to devise a plan so she could catch Akatsuki. It wasn't a complicated plan. It merely involved her not going to class until the last five minutes. She couldn't just hide outside the door waiting for class to finish because Akatsuki would be able to smell her scent. She collaborated with another member of the class to accomplish her plan. Since the lecturer only designated the homework about five minutes before class finished, Ruka asked another student vampire to signal to her through the window when that happened. When Ruka received the signal, she immediately sped towards class and waited by the door, just in time to hear the lecturer say "End of class". She couldn't help but smile when she saw Akatsuki stand up and turn towards the door. When he saw her, his look of despair and sad resignation made her feel sorry for him for a few seconds. And then she remembered the previous five days of her chasing him down and her sympathy vanished. When Akatsuki walked out the door, she promptly delivered the slap she promised she would deliver. The sound echoed shockingly loud along the corridor. The other students looked at her curiously, but not so curious as to inquire out loud about it.

"That's for the past five days of you ignoring me," she said to a not-so-surprised-at-her-action Akatsuki.

"What do you want, Ruka?" Akatsuki asked, his cheek showing a red imprint of her hand.

Ruka felt a rush of anger. "That's it? _What do you want, Ruka?_ That's real sweet, isn't it, Akatsuki? Considering how you _kissed _me out of the blue a few days back, that's all you can say to me?" Out of the corner of her eye, she could see Yuuki and Hanabusa standing around a few metres away.

"What did you want me to say, Ruka?" Akatsuki replied thoroughly annoyed by both the slap and her tone. His annoyance and fear muddled his mind, which was why he said his next words. "I'm sorry I kissed you but I couldn't help it because I love you?"

There was a long silence. And then:

"Shit," Akatsuki swore loudly. "For the record, I _wouldn't_ have said that." His weak attempt at humour failed miserably in that situation.

"What did you say?"

"Hold on a sec," he said before turning to a silent Yuuki and Hanabusa. "Will you two please leave us? Please?"

Yuuki and Hanabusa looked at them concernedly, but didn't object to Akatsuki's rough dismissal of them. They slowly turned away and walked down the corridor.

"I didn't mean that," Akatsuki said, turning back to Ruka. "It was just the traditional good night kiss after a date, nothing more."

"The traditional good night kiss after a date doesn't involve the guy running away after the kiss," Ruka remarked scornfully.

"Look, Ruka. It was a spur of the moment action. I wasn't thinking straight at that time. Please, can we just ignore what happened and move on?"

"You know we can't do that, Akatsuki," Ruka said softly. "We have to settle this right now and figure out what this means to our relationship. Otherwise, our friendship will be a farce. So tell me the truth now: Do you love me, Akatsuki?"

Akatsuki was silent for a few moments, struggling between whether to tell her or not. But he could see that she already knew the truth about his feelings, so denying them would be pointless. "Yes, I love you, Ruka," he said softly. "But before you say or do anything, let me say this. It wouldn't be fair of me to ask you to reciprocate my feelings if you don't feel the same way. Even if you did, it wouldn't be wise of us to attempt to be more than friends. We both know that should it not work, trying to go back to being friends would never work."

"So, basically we have three choices now. We either pursue a romantic relationship, remain as friends or..." Ruka trailed off.

"Or we break off what we have now," Akatsuki finished for her, despairing at the thought of them not being friends anymore. Then he realised something. "Wait, when you say _we_, what does that really mean?"

Ruka understood his meaning immediately. "It means that your feelings for me are the same as my feelings for you."

Akatsuki's eyes widened. It took a few moments to fully digest her words. "Please don't say that just to protect my feelings, Ruka."

Ruka shook her head. "I'm not lying to you, Akatsuki. I cannot deny that I am attracted to you in a way that surprised me when I first realised it. I never realised that I felt this way, because I was blinded by my infatuation with Kaname-sama. Yuuki was right about me. I was blind and foolish. But now, I know the truth. And you do too."

Akatsuki felt a moment of joy that gripped him so hard that he felt like shouting out his delight at hearing her words. But then, that moment disappeared in the face of the current situation. Ruka admitting her feelings did not diminish the seriousness of the situation, or make it any easier. They still had to decide on what sort of relationship they wanted to have.

"You cannot imagine how glad I am at hearing those words from you, Ruka," he smiled at her.

Ruka smiled back. "I'm sorry, Akatsuki. I'm sorry for being so blind. I don't know how much or how long I have hurt you through my ignorance. I'm sorry," she said earnestly.

"This doesn't solve our situation, Ruka. The decision still remains to be made, and our admitting our feelings to each other doesn't make it any easier."

Ruka leaned back against the wall and closed her eyes. "I know," she whispered. She slowly slid down the wall until she was sitting down. Akatsuki sat down beside her. The pair was quiet for a few minutes, trying not to let the enormity of the situation overwhelm them.

Ruka laid her head on Akatsuki's shoulder. Akatsuki looked down at her in surprise, but didn't push her away. Ruka gazed back at him and said softly, "Let me lie here for awhile, just like old times. It will at least postpone the time when we have to decide."

Akatsuki smiled, and rested his head on hers and closed his eyes. The feeling of her body next to him comforted him greatly, and he felt at peace. Nothing else seemed to matter at that moment. They had done this before in the past, but it was as friends. Whenever Ruka was upset, Akatsuki offered his shoulder for her. Of course, for Ruka, it was merely a friend's comfort. But for Akatsuki, he treasured each moment. Now however, it wasn't a shoulder between friends, or between lovers. It was something in between, because neither of them wanted to take a step in either direction. Being friends would make them wonder at what might have been. But if they became lovers, they would risk ending their friendship. And neither of them wanted to break off what they had now. They both knew the decision would have to be made one day. But for now, they each took comfort in the other, trying to ignore the time when they would inevitably have to make their decision.

"What happened to you and Kaname?" Akatsuki murmured softly.

"Infatuation, Nothing more. You could say that what I felt for him was the same as what the Day Class girls felt," Ruka replied.

Before Akatsuki could say something back, they heard footsteps in the corridor. Both of them lifted their heads, jerking out of their reverie. The footsteps belonged to Yuuki and Hanabusa, who appeared from the darkness of the corridor. Both of them looked down at the pair sitting together in curiosity, wondering what had happened between the two. But they didn't inquire out loud.

"I would ask what the hell happened here, but there's no time for that," Hanabusa said brusquely. "Kaname-sama has asked for both of you to see him in his dorm."

Akatsuki and Ruka looked at Hanabusa in surprise. They didn't ask Hanabusa the reason for their summons, but got up swiftly and made their way towards the Night Class dorms.

"I expect a full retelling of what happened here, by the way," Hanabusa called out to the retreating figures.

"They looked very grave. I hope everything turned out well," Yuuki remarked concernedly when Akatsuki and Ruka were out of sight.

"Me too," Hanabusa said, running his hand through his hair worriedly. "Still, let's hope for the best, yeah? Our bet still stands, remember?"

"How could I forget?"

* * *

"Kaname-sama," Akatsuki and Ruka said simultaneously, bowing slightly in front of the dark-haired man.

"I need you two to hunt down and kill two Level Es in the city. They have already killed 4 people and more will die soon. You need to hurry and exterminate them," Kaname instructed them.

"As you wish, Kaname-sama," they replied, bowing before they exited the room.

Outside Kaname's dorm, Akatsuki turned to Ruka. "Talk about us later?"

"Agreed."

And so as they walked towards the gate of Cross Academy, they locked away their emotions and brought out the side that made vampires feared by humans: cold-hearted, emotionless killers.

--

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-Chapter End-


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